Zootopia: The Epoch
by onetimetrip
Summary: While Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde were on a case, they discovered a lab, a machine and an old goat. And Nick was forcefully sucked into the past. To late Medieval England! He meets the infamous outlaw Robin Hood, who looks exactly like himself! What is his relationship with the legendary thief? Can he return to Zootopia?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: According to online sources, Prince John had actually became the King of England after the death of Richard the Lionheart, but of course I won't be so stiff in following historic facts. Instead, the basic setting of this story will be a mix between facts, Disney's Robin Hood and my own stuff.**

 **And please ignore the review I supposedly posted on this story, because it wasn't me. It was a small prank my friend played on me recently and now I have no way to remove it. So, yes, go on with the story and I hope you enjoy it. :)**

* * *

The computer screens blinked, and blueprints were spread all over the wooden table. A lone animal was reclined in the large armchair, his eyes narrowing as he observed the many codes that ran through the monitors. Meanwhile, a dull emerald snake entered the large room.

"Sir, the experiment was a ss-success." The slithery snake hissed as he slipped up next to the mammal.

"Oh! Ah, what a perfect piece of news. Slicker, tell that old goat Fletcher to start the last phase of experimentation." said the mammal in a scratchy voice.

"Yesss Sir. Have you been in contact with Bellwether, Sir?" asked the snake.

"Bellwether? She's stuck behind bars, I've no more business with her." snorted the mammal. "We may have worked together for a bit, but her ideas are totally different from mine. Right now I have someone else that I have my eyes on."

"That." He pointed a trembling finger towards one of the many computer screens that were displayed in front of him, before he growled. "Is who I'm awfully interested in."

Slicker turned to look, and his thin tongue shivering in excitement as he spoke, "Oh, oh, he doesss look like that tricky thief. That sly smile and all, just like that Robin Hood!"

"SILENCE!" roared the mammal, who pounded the table heavily. Slicker stiffened a little, before he scooted away from his master.

"Don't ever speak that scoundrel's name! That fox who dethroned my ancestor, Prince John of England! If it weren't for that brat, my life would not be like this!"

"Sir, this is the 21sssst century, surely what happened to your great-great-great-great-I don't know how many greatssss-grandfather will have no effect on you!"

"No effect? How many times have I said this, you slimy snake! If Prince John remained King, I would have been the mayor! Not that blasted Lionheart!"

"Mayor? England would have fallen first." muttered Slicker under his breath.

"Did you say something, snake?"

"No, no, of course not, Sir."

"Now look at me, I'm just a mere minister! I will never stand for this, Slicker! Mark my words! I'll make sure that no descendants of that fox will ever exist after my plan is completed!"

"Here we go again." sighed Slicker.

"And Zootopia shall be mine!"

And so, the lion laughed.

* * *

"Alright, alright, now-SHUT IT!" yelled the cape buffalo as he glared at all the officers in the room, who went quiet instantly. "And Wilde, no smarty pants remarks."

"Oh, why, yes, Sir, I thought you'd never ask." said the fox, earning chuckles from many and an irritated glare from the Chief. Bogo then shifted his attention to the sheet of paper in his hooves.

"Assignments: Delgato, Spitz, reports of a burglar in Rainforest District. Higgins, Snarlof, patrolling in Savanna Central. Francine, Link and Fragmire, gang fights coming up in Tundratown, clear the whole lot."

The buffalo carried on for quite a bit, and Judy and Nick were one of the last ones to remain.

"McHorn. Parking duty."

The rhinoceros tried to protest, but a sharp look by Bogo made him walk out of the room reluctantly. The Chief then turned to the last pair.

"Hopps, Wilde, there have been complaints by residents in Nocturnal Nightspot about noises underground, go and investigate."

"Yes, sir!" replied Judy enthusiastically, while Nick simply whipped out his sunglasses from his breast pocket, wore it suavely and sauntered off. Judy then jumped along, and the pair of cops walked along the second floor corridor of the ZPD headquarters.

"Nocturnal Nightspot. I've never gone there before." remarked Judy, as she checked the map of Zootopia on her PawPhone. "It's pitch dark there, ain't it?"

"You better get ready a pair of night vision shades, Carrots." said Nick as he started licking on a Pawpsicle that magically appeared out of nowhere.

"I could just use my torch."

"And you can get ready for news articles about owls having their eyes burnt by a blinding light. Plus a bonus jail term."

"Right."

The two then hopped onto the ZPD police vehicle and shot towards their destination.

* * *

The ZPD car halted right before the entrance of the Nocturnal Nightspot, and the left window was rolled down. Judy stuck her head out and stared at the tunnel that led to the underground district. Pedestrian walkways disappeared into the inky darkness of the tunnel and warning signs decorated the outer walls of the entrance, all having big block letters that yelled: Any form of bright light is strictly forbidden.

"It's really dark."

"Really? I can see quite a number of houses in there." said Nick.

"Oh, shut up. You and your night vision." murmured Judy, before she steered towards the visitor's car park.

"Nature's gift."

Suddenly, the vehicle came to a stop, causing Nick to bang his head against the front.

"Oww! Quit it."

"No, there's a long line before us. Look." Judy pointed, not feeling apologetic at the least. "What's the guard doing? Just let all the cars go in already."

"I'll go take a look." said Nick, and the fox climbed out of the car and swiftly dashed up to the guard post in a jiffy. He coughed to get ready his authoritative voice and spoke, "Excuse me- Oh Flash, Flash, hundred yard dash! Buddy! How nice to see you."

The sloth slowly moved his head sideways, made a small smile that was formed in fifteen seconds, before he answered slowly, "... Nice... To... See... You... Nick..."

"Do you mind speeding up a bit? Like how you did during the street racing. My bunny partner's getting impatient."

"... Will... Do..."

"Well, good luck." waved the fox as he turned back.

"... My... Best..."

Nick then opened the car door, just to find Judy squinting to try to get a good look into the tunnel.

"No point trying, Carrots. Just use your night vision glasses."

Judy let out a long sigh, and her ears drooped as she wore her glasses.

"At least you have your ears."

"Yeah, yeah. So? What did the guard say?"

"Oh, he said..."

"Said?"

"... Will..."

"Will?"

"... Do..."

"Uh huh."

"... My..."

Judy Hopps then let out a cry of shock, before she slapped both of her paws on her face. She groaned agonizingly, and finally uttered, "A sloth.

"To be more accurate, the fastest sloth you know in all of Zootopia."

"Urghhhh, Flash. I'll tell Bogo, we won't be coming back till next evening." breathed Judy as she took out her PawPhone. The screen lit up the bunny's face as her fingers ran through her contacts.

"Clawhauser, tell the Chief we won't be returning until tomorrow... Uh... Yeah... You see, the guard is a sloth."

Very quickly, she was done with the call, and she sank deeper into her seat, her face creased with lethargy. "It's going to be a long day."

"Yes indeed." agreed Nick. "How do you suppose we pass the time?"

"You know, there's this app everyone's been talking about. It was released a week ago." said Judy as she fiddled with her phone. "Here, this one."

Judy passed the phone to Nick, who looked at the screen curiously. The app's title and design were very simplistic, buttons "Play" and "Options" in black and white boxes and a common title font was used for the letters "PJE".

"You are to role play as a character in medieval England, and get the story going. But what's really odd is that only one character can be played, while the rest are locked." explained Judy.

"Huh. Weird."

"That's not the end, Nick. No matter how many times you try, no matter who play it, the character you choose will always have one ending. Well, I tried it three times and it's not working."

"A prank game, huh? So, what's the ending?"

"Death. That's why everyone's buzzing about it. It's just so weird."

"Wow. I'll give this a shot."

"Go ahead, it'll take another 30 minutes for that one car at the front to pass through the parking gate."

Nick then pressed the "Play" button, and the main page faded to white.

New Game?

Nick went for the "Yes" button.

Choose a character.

He scrolled horizontally, and let out a small laugh, "There's really only one character to choose."

There were plenty of characters, such as a rooster called Alan-A-Dale, a badger called Friar Tuck, a bear called Little John, vultures called Nutsy and Trigger and many more, however, all were unavailable. He then scrolled back to the only choice, which was a fox.

"A fox?" exclaimed Nick as he stared at the black silhouette. It was definitely a fox, with a pointy snout and bushy looking tail. The character held onto a distinct shape of a bow and arrows.

"Oh, I forgot to mention. The game's plot was based on Robin Hood." said Judy, who was having earphones stuffed into her ears. As expected of her wondrous sense of hearing.

"I've heard that name before. Or maybe not. I'm horrible in History."

"You know, that infamous outlaw from late medieval England? Sherwood Forest and Nottingham? He robs from the rich and gives them to the poor."

"Sounds like a mighty vigilante to me. But still, I've never heard of him."

"You should have! All foxes should have! He might just be your ancestor!"

Nick snorted derisively, "Ancestor? A thief as an ancestor? I'm a cop, Carrots."

"Robin Hood was a good thief. His stories were inspiring."

"Oh, so now thieves can be good, huh? Good try, Carrots, but a thief is still a thief no matter what he does." retorted Nick, the fox cop pressing onto the silhouette of Robin Hood in the game.

"Con-artists can be good too, am I wrong?"

The screen faded to white again, and Nick felt himself sinking deeper into his seat as well. He was a con-artist too, so saying that Robin Hood was a bad...

"Sorry, Carrots."

"Nah. Go play the game." Judy waved her right paw, before she stepped onto the car pedal, moving the ZPD car slightly forward.

Nick gave a grateful smile, and then proceeded on. He controlled the black figure of Robin Hood throughout the game, where the starting stage was to steal something from the rich Sheriff of Nottingham. Along with Robin Hood was the bear Little John, an accomplice. Then he distributed the rewards from the first stage to the poor. Complete a stage, distribute the money. This cycle continued for quite a number of stages, and most were fairly easy, with the targets often the Sheriff and a Crocodile Castle Guard Captain.

He checked for the time on Judy's phone. 3.30 pm. He had played for a full hour.

The next four stages introduced some characters like Friar Tuck, the priest of Nottingham church, Alan-A-Dale, who was just some rooster musician and a few baby bunnies that did absolutely nothing.

Then at stage thirty or so, a vixen named Maid Marian entered the story, with her biography reading that she was the love interest of Robin Hood.

"You're at Maid Marian already? That's pretty quick."

Nick ignored Judy and continued to move on for another eleven stages. Yet another character was introduced, and for some reason, the lion was fully colored in gold and red.

"Oh, oh! Prince John of England! He's supposed to be an evil guy in the history books, but here, he's portrayed like a saint of some sort."

"Hmm..." muttered Nick, as he directed Robin Hood to go up the steps of the castle. Upon reaching the royal treasury, he completed yet another stage.

The story for the next stage was disturbing, when Robin Hood appeared to be one-legged, and all the previous characters from before seemed to be antagonistic towards the fox. And for the first time in the game, dialogue came up.

The first speech bubble by Alan-A-Dale popped out, "Begone! You vile fox!"

Nick froze.

The second speech bubble by Friar Tuck, "Usurper! Thief!"

Nick felt his throat going drier and drier.

The third speech bubble was by the colored lion, "Die, you sly fox!"

The fox cop was by now, sweating profusely. All Robin Hood's previous allies were surrounding him, their black figures inching closer, with spears in hand.

Was this the last stage? After playing for forty plus stages, Robin Hood was done in by a lion who only had screen time for two stages?

Suddenly, another speech bubble appeared. The character who supposedly spoke was none other than Maid Marian.

"Please don't kill him!"

"Hey Nick, which stage are you at now?" chirped Judy after she had driven the car a few centimeters forward. "Oh... no, no, no, how could I forget? Did you read those..."

Nick nodded solemnly, and Judy gasped.

"Sorry, I-I forgot to warn you... I-I didn't mean to.."

"Carrots, I'm fine. Just let me continue the game, okay?"

Judy Hopps's ears drooped, but after seeing the look on Nick's face, she kept quiet and observed quietly. Nick then pressed the screen, and the story continued, with Prince John having a speech bubble, "Kill the vixen and the fox!"

Immediately after, a long sword was brandished by the silhouette of Little John and the blow was sent directly onto Robin Hood. A strangled cry screamed from the phone's speaker and then the screen faded to white, before returning to the homepage.

"That's the end?" asked Nick incredulously.

"Yeah. But of course, what really happened was a happy ending. Robin Hood was celebrated as a legendary and famous outlaw who married Maid Marian, and Prince John of England was removed of his crown."

"PJE. Prince John of England. Whoever made this app was definitely a fan of that lion, and a Robin Hood hater."

Judy snickered in response, and grinned when she looked out of the windshield.

"Finally."

And soon the two drove through the parking gate, with Flash waving an extremely slow goodbye.

* * *

Judy Hopps took a tentative step forward, and her paws blindly felt for anything that was in her way. Even with her night vision glasses, she still felt lost, since everything looked so green. Meanwhile, Nick coolly walked past her, unfazed by the darkness.

"Nick! Where's our first destination?"

"Mr Howler's. He lives on Street 74. Bogo said he was the first one to file in a complaint."

"Okay, you lead the way."

"Will do, will do." smirked the fox, before he purposefully leaped a few steps faster than Judy.

"Hey!" Judy called out, the bunny irked by Nick's actions.

"Nature's gift." he replied with a chuckle.

They went through twists and turns on the dark pathways, and without any warning, Nick stopped abruptly and Judy crashed into his back.

"We're here, Carrots."

Judy spotted the green shadow of a house sitting upon a stout tree with curly branches, and she tip-toed and reached for the high door. Few knocks later, a large Tawny Owl emerged.

"Kah! Annoying, annoying, annoying! Who are you brats?"

"Mr Howler, we're from the ZPD." Judy said as she took out her identification card. "We've received complaints from you that there have been..."

"ZPD!? Oh yes, yes, yes! Mind clearing up those wretched whirring sounds from under my house? I can't sleep at night because of it!"

"You mean, morning." corrected Nick.

"Shush, Nick. Sorry, Mr Howler, can we get more details about these "wretched whirring sounds" you mentioned?" Judy inquired as she scribbled onto her notepad.

"Well, it always starts at around nine in the morning, all the way till eleven, then it stops for quite a while before coming back again and again in intervals of... I guess, around twenty-"

The ground started vibrating in a fraction of a second, and Mr Howler started howling angrily, "See! Here it is again! It's knocking my brains out! Please, just go and stop it!"

"Yes, of course, Mr Howler. Do you mind showing us a way to go down there?"

"Harumph. Come, follow me." The owl then swooped down from his house and flew to his left, with Judy and Nick following him closely.

They were soon led away from the main streets and ended up in a small alleyway. It did not take long for Mr Howler to direct them to a small hole that smelled of sewage water. Judy scrunched up her nose, while Nick cringed in disgust.

"This is the only entrance. Good luck and good riddance to those sickening sounds!" Mr Howler cried out. "I'll be going back to sleep, so if you have any problems, don't bother coming to find me!"

The owl left swiftly and soon it was only the pair left to their own devices.

"Ladies first." Nick offered as he shuffled further away from the stinky spot.

"Nuh-uh. You go first." denied Judy, as she extended her paw out.

"You're the cop."

"You're a cop too!"

Letting out a sigh of resignation, Nick dragged his legs over and after turning backwards, he slowly climbed down the rungs of the rusty ladder that reached deep into the hole. Suddenly, his paws slipped and down he went, straight into the dirty sewage water. The fox shouted in surprise, and Judy tried to hold in the urge to burst out laughing.

After the bunny cop went in, she fortunately reached the cemented ground with no issues, but the sewage water was still as high as her waist level.

"Oh... I feel faint." she complained as she covered her snout, before she turned to look at Nick, the poor fox drenched in smelly water. Judy then started laughing, while Nick flicked the back of the bunny's head.

"Let's get going."

They trudged through the sewage waters, the smell of dirty trash, urine and anything disgusting they could think of permeating through the large sewage pipe. The metal walls were grimy and utterly vomit-able. To both cops, the journey through this place was hellish. They continued to move forward for another twenty minutes, until the same whirring sound reverberated throughout the space. It continued to ring, and both fox and bunny wasted no time to run towards the source.

Judy's ears perked up and she beckoned Nick to follow as she found a metal door. After turning the hatch, she swung it open and hurriedly crawled into the tunnel.

"Nature's gift, eh, Carrots?" remarked Nick as he followed suit.

The duo traversed through the tunnel, and after quite some time, Nick groaned, "This smell's going to last on my fur for days."

"Nick. Focus."

"Yep, yep."

"Ah, here we are." said Judy, after her paw hit another door. Pushing it slightly, the door hinges creaked and after checking that the coast was clear, she hopped out. Nick was out in seconds and the two scanned the area.

"Déjà vu~" slurred Nick. "Carrots, does this feel familiar?"

"Very." admitted Judy. "A lab."

Through her night vision glasses, Judy discerned the shape of a giant machine that towered all the way to the ceiling and had thick fat wires extending out from the bottom to multiple power sources. Their surroundings were looking sinister enough.

"Come on, we're gonna snoop around." Judy said in a hushed tone.

Then the fox and the bunny slunk off, sneaking around the parameters of the lab, until Judy paused.

"What did you find?" whispered Nick, and Judy was now pointing a finger towards a small tottering figure. Nick then spotted the target: a goat staggering around as he tended to the machine. The goat wore thick glasses, an overly long lab coat that was stained by chemicals or paint, thinning hair and a long goatee that seemed to strike a laughing chord in Nick's nerves.

"What is he doing?" muttered Judy.

"Who knows? He looks plenty weak for us to tackle and arrest him." suggested Nick.

"I guess you're right, okay, you'll give the countdown."

"Okay, 3, 2, 1, 0."

"Do you even know how to give a countdown?"

"Uh huh." replied Nick lazily.

"That was way too fast!" said Judy in annoyance, although her volume was enough to raise the attention of the goat scientist.

"Who's... There?" called the goat in a panicked and feeble voice.

"Grrr, you did this on purpose!" Judy glared at the fox who simply smirked, before she dashed off to get the goat.

"Halt! This is the ZPD! We'd be bringing you back to headquarters for an interrogating session, please come with us." commanded Judy, who showed off her gleaming police badge. Meanwhile, Nick moved up next to her, standing as smartly as the bunny.

The goat was evidently ruffled and he suddenly scrambled towards the machine at a speed unlike his age. Judy shouted a "hey!" and jumped forward to prevent the scientist from doing anything funny, until the goat brought out a taser, zapping the bunny straight on the arm.

"Argh!" she yelled, her nerves paralyzed and she could hear Nick shouting something inaudible. Struggling to look up, she found her fox friend grappling with the unexpectedly strong old goat. The taser was suddenly thrown onto the ground, right next to her, and she heard muffled crashes and thumps.

Until a loud beep made her opened her eyes saucer-wide, as a bright blue light was emitted from the machine, juddering noises roaring, giant gusts of wind blowing the light-weight goat away, while Nick held on, the fox desperately trying to reach out for the stop button.

 _Initiating time travel mode. Passenger, One. Time travelling in..._

Judy gasped, and started screaming at the top of her lungs.

"No! No! Nick! Get away from that thing! Nick!"

Her fox partner could not hear her words at all, and he did not seem to have heard the digital voice as he continued to fight against the gale.

 _3_.

"Nick!"

 _2._

"I said, get away!"

 _1._

"THAT'S A TIME TRAVEL MACHINE!"

 _0._

The wind acted in the opposite direction, immediately sucking Nick in, the blue light dissipating into a whirlwind of light. And when the noise died down, all the blueprints and documents and goat that were sent flying all dropped onto the ground. Judy breathed raggedly, her eyes half-closing.

The zap was getting to her, trying to force her into an unconscious state. Her head flopped to the ground, her ears perking up a little before it drooped against her back.

For a moment there, she thought she heard Nick saying,

"So, that's how you do a countdown, Carrots?"

* * *

The fox grumbled in pain, eyelids heavy and after minutes of whimpering, he pushed himself up on all fours, his arms weak and tired. It almost felt like a jet-lag, like he had been travelling for a long long time. He remembered the lab, the machine, and Carrots mumbling about something.

And then that blue light.

"Ugh..." He groaned, before he fell onto his face. He felt useless and sick. Then he slept. For how long, he was unsure, but by the time he was ready to go up and about, it was late morning.

Nick stretched himself, more refreshed and ready. He dug into his pockets, checking for his identification card, gun, pawcuffs, torch and of course, his sunglasses. Swishing his bushy red tail about, he started wandering around. He was certainly not in Zootopia, since he had never seen such a dense forest that was deprived of any concrete roads and houses. The woods were deathly quiet, still and a dangerous aura surrounded the thick canopy.

Nick dared not move brashly, lest he lands himself in deep trouble.

Crouching down, the fox sniffed a little, and sharpened his hearing, but he sensed nothing. The unfamiliar underbrush was hindering him from getting any information about anything. He softly scratched the soil and rubbed the brown lumps between his fingers. Wet. It rained not long ago. Even the ferns were holding droplets of rain within their bosoms.

The cop continued to amble through the forest, occasionally tripping over a root or two.

By noon, he was thirsty and hungry, and finally he found a berry tree, and fortunately, a blueberry one. He plucked off a bunch, and continued shuffling forward. Then he found a small lake and waterfall. Suddenly aware that his clothes were horribly smelly, he made sure that no one was around, and wasted no time to use the place all for himself. He washed his uniform near the waterfall and left it hanging on a tree branch to dry. After ensuring that his belongings were safely placed at the bottom of the thick oak, Nick dipped himself into the water

"Ah, life." He said, and closed his eyes, deciding to relax for a bit. Everything felt surreal and Nick could not ask for a better opportunity for him to get away from a hectic city life.

Suddenly, he heard incoming heavy footsteps of someone. He perked up his ears in alert, and tried to sniff out the scent of whoever it was.

A bear. Who seemed to be bounding towards here. Nick hurriedly took in a big gulp of air and went underwater.

His sense of hearing may not be as good as Carrots, but he could at least detect where the bear was going. And sure enough, the heavy footsteps stopped at the edge of the lake. Nick tilted his head up, seeing the blurred shadow of the bear who was shouting something.

Then the thing he dreaded happened, when a giant furry paw was thrust into the water, and Nick fervently hoped that the bear would not grab onto him.

But that did not happen. Nick was instead grabbed by the collar, forcefully pulled out and sputtering, he blinked and looked at the bear. The fella before him grinned joyfully, his eyes twinkling. He then shouted, his voice almost rendering Nick deaf.

"Rob! I've been searchin' for you! It's not even bathing time!"

"Ahaha, yeah, ahaha." Nick replied dryly, he felt exposed, since his whole naked body was just revealed to this weird bear. "Now, now, put me down, put me down."

"You sound weird, pal. Got yourself a cold or somethin'?"

Nick shook his head and quickly gestured towards the water, really wishing that the bear would just let him go and let himself get clean. The bear complied and soon Nick was in the water again. The fox knew that he had to get out of here. Any longer, he'll get stuck with this bear.

"What're those clothes?" piped the bear, who skipped towards the branch and held his uniform up and started examining it.

"No, no! Wait, um, don't touch that!" said Nick frantically as he swam forward.

"These are strange, pal. Yours, eh?"

"Y-Yeah, pretty much. Just leave them hanging, please."

"Huh. Alrighty then. I guess I'll join ye, I need some washin' up."

Nick felt his face contorting in horror as he witnessed the bear getting ready to strip. He was familiar with all the naked animals in the Mystic Springs Oasis, but this still felt so wrong. This bear stranger was about to jump into the same lake. Naked.

The urge to scream stop rose and Nick was about to open his mouth until a smooth voice interrupted, "Johnny, what're you doin'? Too eager to take a bath?"

The bear's jaw dropped open and his eyes darted from Nick to the animal who just spoke.

Curious, Nick took a cautious glance at the animal behind. A slender red fox stood behind, his black shiny eyes looking down at Nick's green lazy ones. His ears were tipped black and were as big as Nick's, and even his snout was as long as his. The fox wore a Lincoln green shirt, light green pants and on his head was a yellow hat that had a red feather sticking out.

"Woah, by golly, who's this fella over here?"

"R-R-R-Robin! H-H-He looks exactly like you!"

"Johnny, I can see that." stated the fox as he slowly squatted down, bringing his face closer to Nick. "But his eyes are green. Strange, I never would've imagined that another fox existed in Sherwood Forest!"

Nick had no response as he stared at the fox before him. Judging from the fur's color, this fox was around the same age as himself. The names these two animals mentioned reminded him of many things, and a flood of information gushed through his mind.

 _Sherwood Forest. Little John. Bear. Robin. Fox._

"It cannot be." Nick breathed.

"What can't be?" asked the fox before him.

"Robin Hood." Nick blurted out. The fox blinked in surprise, and chuckled, before he stood up. Tipping his hat, the fox smirked a smirk so similar to his own, and said,

"Well, Robin Hood's here, says I."


	2. Chapter 2

The first thing Judy Hopps felt was a tingling numbness that nibbled at her arm. The next was her ears picking up the soft beeping of machinery and the noise of the trickling of liquid droplets. Her nose caught a waft of some kind of medication, or was it bleach? The smell lingered like a haunting presence and it was familiar to Judy. She came to one with Mrs Otterton before.

The hospital.

She forgot how she got here, and why was she here. She tried to collect her memories, and seconds later, a word-no, a name- popped into her head.

Nick.

Her eyelids fluttered open and Judy found herself gazing right at the drab gray ceiling of the ward. Those pair of purple eyes darted about anxiously, and her paws clawed on the thin and flimsy blankets. All the other beds were empty, no one was around, and the room was dark as night. She was not complicatedly connected to an IV pump or anything, so the bunny was free to move, and she did as she tried to exert her muscles, but the paralysis persisted. Judy squirmed about and pushed herself out of the bed, and managed to stand up as her knees shook.

"Nick..." She breathed as she took an unsteady step forward. Her vision became moist as she remembered her friend being sucked away by a machine. A time travel machine.

Where was he? Will her partner come back if she did a countdown?

"3." She muttered. A squirrel nurse walked past her ward while carrying heaps of files, and dropped them the instant she saw the rabbit patient struggling to walk away from her bed.

"2." Judy Hopps rasped. The nurse shouted for her colleagues and then rushed to the bunny in a frenzy. Meanwhile, a chipmunk nurse headed off to get Chief Bogo, who had arrived at the hospital just a while ago.

Her heart tightened with worry, while the squirrel squeaked for her to stay put since her muscles and nerves were stunned. She cared nothing about herself.

"1." Her weakened self was pushed back easily by the nurse and she sat onto the bed with a thump.

"0."

All she cared was Nick Wilde.

But he never appeared.

Judy blankly stared at the squirrel nurse, and a small tear rolled down her furry cheeks. The nurse noticed the rabbit's ears all droopy and miserable, and the smaller animal patted the cop's back out of pity.

"Darling, your superior is here." The nurse whispered. The bunny said nothing in reply, and she was left alone, but not for long.

"Officer Hopps, you have a lot of explaining to do." a gruff voice called out. Judy looked up and found Chief Bogo staring at her sternly with arms crossed. His glare was as usual, frightening, but Judy was not in the mood to get scared as she nodded listlessly.

"If you have time to mope around, then use it to find Wilde."

Judy's ears lifted up as she gazed up at the cape bull. Bogo was right. She had to find Nick.

With lifted spirits, Judy recounted the lab, the machine and the old goat. She told Bogo everything, from Flash, to Mr Howler, to the sewage pipe. How Nick had time travelled.

Her experience sounded ridiculous. And that was the first word the Police Chief said after Judy ended the events that happened during the investigation.

"Time travel is not possible! Did the sewage water made you dumb?" yelled Bogo, whose tone was obviously saying that he did not believed the cop.

"But it is not impossible, Chief Bogo." Judy uttered.

"Evidence?" demanded Bogo.

Judy blinked, before she asked, "Sir, how was I discovered?"

"We tracked you down using GPS and found you floating down a canal in Nocturnal Nightspot. You must have drifted quite a way out from the sewage pipes. I'm surprised you didn't drown. "

"That's the first evidence!" exclaimed Judy. "The goat scientist was present. Or else who would have brought me out of the lab? We can nab him and get the information out of his mouth!"

"There's thousands of goats in Zootopia, do you have a name?" Bogo inquired and Judy sweat dropped, perplexed by the question. She had to provide another proof to convince the Chief. The bunny tapped her foot on the ground as she contemplated, before she shouted.

"The lab! It can't have gone anywhere, and the machine is definitely still there!"

"Hmph." huffed the bull. He was skeptical, and very much so. Glancing at the optimistic look on Hopps' face, he sighed and with a stoic expression, he jabbed his right hoof towards Judy's nose.

"Fine. After you're discharged, I'll give you 48 hours. Show me that time travel exists."

The bunny cop ignored the muscle numbness in her legs, sprang up from her bed and did a perfect salute to the Police Chief.

"Yes sir!" She cried out enthusiastically.

Bogo grunted, before his bulky figure turned around and trotted away. Then he paused, turned his head around and spoke,

"And after you've proved it to me, you'll better do a good job in dragging that fox back to the force. Roll call's boring without that smart mouth of his."

The Police Chief left, while Judy smiled.

"Yes sir." She said softly.

She'll find Nick. Without fail.

* * *

"Hey, Robin, do I look scary?" Asked Little John.

"Of course not! You're fine-looking, that's all." Robin laughed while rubbing dirt off his arm after damping his red fur.

"So why is your look-alike swimmin' away from us?" asked the bear as he cupped his hands to contain some water, before using the liquid to wash his face. Meanwhile, a confused Nick was moving further and further away from the fox and bear pair.

After the notorious Robin Hood had introduced himself, both strangers had plunged themselves into the lake, naked, with Little John saying that they were having their "bathing time". Obscenity aside, Nick was absolutely dumbfounded that he would end up in the past. Thinking back, that gigantic machine must have been a time machine, and it was that blasted thing's doing that made him end up in such a mess.

 _What about Judy? Is she okay? Did she get the goat? Am I going to be stuck in Medieval England forever, without ever getting back home? Who built that machine? Who? What?_

Anxiety coursed through his veins as these questions ran through his mind, jumbling his brain. Nick glanced towards Robin Hood and Little John while massaging his temples. First things first, he had to assess the situation.

He was a modern animal, a civilized one. Adapting to old England posed no trouble for him, since it was part of the biology of foxes. However, with his clothing and behavior, he will be labelled as a weirdo and possibly be killed off if he got careless. He was not going to take any chances of surviving here as a lone fox.

And so he required help from the natives.

So the first choice that had already presented itself in front of Nick was to ask Robin Hood for shelter, and learn the necessary survival skills needed in the Middle Ages.

Yet there was another problem.

If he were to follow Robin Hood, he would automatically become an outlaw. A thief.

Nick did not want to revert back to his old ways, not ever.

And so, there's the second choice.

Ask the outlaw for directions to a settlement, and slowly take his time to live a crime-free life in Medieval England. He could stay low while he finds a way to return to Zootopia. Yes, this sounded so much plausible. He could totally go for this opt-

Nick Wilde found himself looking into his reflection on the surface of the water.

"For crying out loud." He groaned. "Why in the world do I look so much like him? Now I can't stay low, can I?"

"That's what I wanted to ask, my foxy friend."

Nick turned his head sideways, just to see Robin Hood inching closer to him. He instinctively shifted further away, the lake's water rippling about.

"Relax, relax. We're all foxes, aye? And if yer a fox, it's basic courtesy to introduce yourself." said Robin. "What's your name, laddie?"

Nick eyed the other fox suspiciously, before he responded, "Wilde. Nick Wilde."

"Nick Wilde. No middle name?"

"Um, I do have one. Piberius. Nicholas Piberius Wilde."

Robin chuckled, and extended out a wet paw towards Nick, who shook it hesitantly.

"Nice to meet you, Nick. So, mind explainin' where did you come from?" Robin asked, before he whipped out Nick's gun from behind his back. "And what' tis strange thing?"

Nick glanced behind him, at the base of the oak tree and back to the gun in Robin's grasp, before he gasped in shock.

"When the hell did you get that?" Nick shouted. "I-It was behind me all the time! And give it back!"

With both arms flailing wildly, he tried to snatch the gun back, however his head was suddenly pushed downwards, into the water. He fought against Robin Hood's paw and managed to resurface, with his head thoroughly soaked. Sending an irritated glare towards the other fox, Nick shoved his paw into Robin's face.

"Give. It. Back." emphasized Nick, all the vowels sharp and clear.

"Impatient fox. If you answer my questions, I may think about it." Robin replied, a crafty smile on his face. The two foxes stared at each other for a few seconds, until Nick yelled, all his pent up frustration released out like a torpedo.

"I'm not from these parts, okay? My home is light years away, I'm absolutely lost, clueless, and frightened right now, and I probably might die in the next few days! Happy!? Now give me back the gun."

Nick was now panting after shouting out all those words, his extended arm unmoving. Robin was certainly astonished by his reaction, and with a small smile, he answered, "No."

"No? Did you just say-"

"I just said, no."

"Oh, so now you're trying to take my things? Real fun, thank you."

"I meant that, you aren't going to die."

"What?" Nick asked with a bewildered face.

"Because, Nick, you're comin' with me." Robin Hood answered with a mysterious grin.

"With us!" interrupted Little John. "You're lost! So what? We'll teach you the ways of us Englishmen!"

"Hahaha, good one, Johnny. This kid will be a nice addition to the group." Robin commented as he laughed heartily. Nick, on the other hand, watched the duo with half-opened eyes. These two just made a decision without asking him. Great. Just great.

"I never said I was going to join you outlaws." Nick articulated sternly.

"Outlaws? Tsk, tsk, tsk, what a nasty word to say! We're animals that abide the law, ain't that right, Little John?" said Robin, who cocked his head towards his bear friend, prompting Little John to nod his head in agreement.

"Oh, is that so? Then what about Prince John? _You_ are the infamous thief who goes against his rule." Nick argued.

"Prince John? Under his rule? Pfft, you've got your facts wrong, Nicky Nick." Little John snickered with an amused expression. "King Richard is the current ruler of England, not that mummy's boy Prince John. And Rob is certainly infamous without the 'in'."

"Gosh, you really do have much to learn, Nicky Nick." added Robin, and suddenly both bear and fox erupted into fits of laughter, their movement splashing water everywhere.

"Nicky Nick! You're a genius, Johnny, that's a mighty hilarious nickname you've thought up there!"

Both chortled for a long while, until a loud gunshot resounded through the woods, with many birds shooting out of the canopy out of fright, as well as silencing Robin and Little John immediately. Nick brought his arm down and blew away the smoke wisping out of the gun's nozzle, while having a smug look on his face.

"Don't worry. That was a blank."

Robin looked at his paws, realizing that the black object was gone. He beamed at Nick with an impressed look, before he called out to Little John, the bear still in a daze from the sudden deafening sound.

"See that, Johnny? This laddie got skills. And aren't you an interesting fella? That was some amazin' stuff you've got there. Scared the hell outta Johnny."

"Ahem, well, I was a hustler in the past."

"Hustler? Whatever is that word? Anyways, this decides it; you're comin' with us, Nicky Nick."

The latter paused for a while. He tried to remember the times when he flipped through his history books. King Richard the First. Prince John. Robin Hood.

Nick snapped his paws and smirked in delight. Thank goodness he had an efficient memory. He learnt about Robin Hood during his school days. He knew Robin Hood, just that he forgot about him.

His old history teacher had mentioned that Robin Hood was only labelled as an outlaw after Prince John seized the throne. Nick almost felt like bragging to Judy that he could remember all these dull facts.

So if King Richard was still on his throne, it meant one thing:

Robin Hood was not yet an outlaw.

This explained their reactions when he called them "outlaws".

It seemed that the time machine had brought him back in time further than he thought.

And it also meant that he could get help from Robin Hood while remaining a crime-free fox.

"Nicky Nick, we don't have time for you to daydream, let's get goin'." Robin waved his right paw in front of Nick, who promptly broke out of his reverie.

"I told you, I'm not joining you, Hood." drawled Nick. "Unless..."

"Unless?" Both Little John and Robin repeated.

"You guys stop calling me with that stupid name."

Robin whistled in satisfaction, and nodded. Then he swum away from Nick, got himself out of the lake, and shook off dozens of water droplets off his fur. Little John did the same thing. Both wore their respective clothing in less than a minute, and were ready to leave the place. Nick sniffed his fur to check for any disgusting odours and fortunately, he was stink-free. Then he got back on land, albeit feeling slightly embarassed.

"Oh. My clothes aren't dried yet." He announced after touching his uniform. Not wanting to expose himself in his birthday suit for one second longer, Nick hurriedly dunked back into the lake.

"I don't see how it is a problem. Wait here, Nicky Nick."

Robin Hood dashed off, and jumped up to hold onto a thin tree branch. The fox then deftly swung from tree to tree, and disappeared into the tree tops.

"Did he just..." began Nick with a frown in between his brows.

"Nicky Nick." said Little John mischievously. Nick shot a glare at the bear, who turned his head away while trying to act innocent.

"Where is he going?" Nick inquired and gave a yawn.

"Our hideout. Fret not, he'll be back with some nice clothes for ya."

Sure enough, Robin returned with a lump of fabric in his arms. He dumped the tunic, pants and belt onto Nick's head, who pulled them away with a click on the tongue.

"Hurry up and get dressed up, laddie."

"Can you guys face the other way?"

Robin and Little John exchanged glances with questioning looks on their faces. They turned back to look at Nick, who smiled awkwardly.

"Oh..." both the bear and the fox breathed in realization. Finally attaining privacy, Nick got out of the lake, shook himself dry, pulled the old gray tunic made of cotton over his torso, fastened it at the waist with the belt and put his legs into the pair of black, rough pants. The clothes were surprisingly comfortable and fitting.

"How do I look?"

"Like Robin." said Little John.

"Like me. Exactly like me." agreed Robin.

"Wow. Awesome." Nick replied sarcastically

"Well, if I were to compliment you, I would be complimentin' myself in an indirect manner."

"But you do look dashing." praised Little John.

"Oh, why, Johnny, thank you." chuckled Robin as he gave a wink towards Nick.

Nick rolled his eyes at the other fox, and let out a sigh. "So, where are we headed to?"

"To the main streets!" said a very merry Little John.

"What for?" questioned Nick as he gathered up his belongings, which included his wet uniform.

"Why, today is the day when King Richard is leavin' his castle for the Third Crusade and His Majesty will be passin' by the county before the sun sets. Nottingham will be full of life! Colours! Nothing you've ever seen before!" said Robin with arms outstretched, excitement written on his face. Nick's jaw dropped after registering whatever Robin had mentioned and he enunciated, "The Third Crusade? The Third one?"

"Yes, the Third Crusade." answered Little John. Nick blinked. His mind went back to the history books. The Third Crusade, that was when Prince John forcefully seized the throne. And it also signaled the rise of Robin Hood.

He was itching to tell them this fact. But if he were to say it, there was a chance he may change history forever, so he could only keep his mouth shut.

"Well, what are ye waiting for? We have no time to waste!" urged Robin, the fox eager to leave.

"Yeah! We've got ter get there before it gets bustlin' with animals!" Little John yelled and plodded off behind Robin. After making sure he left nothing behind, Nick ran after the bear and the fox. He wondered what will happen. He wondered how long will he last. He wondered if he will ever get back to Zootopia.

He wondered, if he will ever see Judy again.

"Find me, Carrots." He said under his breath. "And I'll find you back."


	3. Chapter 3

**I apologize for the late update. I was having exams. Thank you for the numerous followings and I hope that you will enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

Nick was numb to the cosmopolitan society of Zootopia. The billboards, neon lights, traffic, skyscrapers, the sheer population that was always on the move, had been there ever since he was a wee little fox cub. Nothing could surprise him, nothing.

Or so he thought.

The streets of Nottinghamshire were full of stout houses where paint flaked off their walls, rusty street lamps that were choked full of melted wax, roads that only consisted of soil and brittle pebbles. Stalls with old, fraying canvas draping over the top were strewn all the way down, and the owners were screaming their voices hoarse as they tried to attract last minute customers before they pack up for the parade. Apothecaries, clanking workshops and grubby eateries lined the other end, and most animals were slowly heading towards the main road. Nick turned his head in that direction, then the other, and the next, till his neck was stiff from overworking. Buzzes of chatter rang out from all places, street rats and cats hiding in the many shabby corners. He saw no big, ferocious predators, and much of Nottingham was littered with meek prey and small predators like the polecat that brushed past him just a second ago.

It was an entirely new world Nick had the fortune to be in.

A tap on the shoulder made him turned face to face with Robin, who smirked and said, "You all right?"

"Uh, Yeah." Nick replied, before his eyes trailed back to a plump pigeon trying to sell some apples.

"Don't get all muddled in the head too soon, the good stuff's arriving. Oh, and mind not to raise your head too high."

Nick nodded lazily, before he pulled the cloth to cover his snout. Right before they entered the town, Robin had handed him a head scarf, telling him to hide his face, because "their likeness will freak Nottingham out.". He was even forced to tuck his tail into his clothes, and it was very, very uncomfortable

"They might think you're my long lost twin of somethin'."

"Except that I'm not." said Nick as he quirked an eyebrow, unamused.

"But I wouldn't want to cause an uproar." Robin stated as a matter of fact.

"Sir Robin!"

"Good day, Sir Robin!"

Such was called by whomever they passed by, and with great interest, Nick leaned over to the bear and asked, "Why Sir Robin?"

Little John then whispered back into Nick's ear, "He's the Master of Locksley Manor. Told ya Rob's infamous without the 'in'. And one day, his name will be resounding throughout England sooner or later, you'll see."

"My, my, indeed." Nick agreed monotonously. He already knew that Robin's name will not only resound throughout England; his name would go down in history. Suddenly, Robin himself looked behind and said, "Looks like we have time to spare, shall we go visit the blacksmith, Johnny?"

"Otto's? Why not?" Little John beamed, and Robin quickened his pace, while urging Nick to hurry along.

The large body size of Little John parted the crowd, so the two foxes just had to stick close to the bear, and they could travel through the streets with ease. They went down winding pathways, and upon entering a bland corner, many of the villagers peered out of their windows to see who was coming. And as if a bell was struck, bunnies and turtles tumbled out of the doors, and they started calling Robin's name excitedly.

"Robin Hood! Robin Hood!" chanted the kids that crowded around the fox jumpily.

"Who's this, Sir Robin Hood?" chirped one of the bunnies that reminded him of Judy's 275 chatty siblings. Or did the number increased to 300 lately? Or 350? Ah, who cares.

"A friend." Robin Hood smiled as he patted the young bunny's head. "Now, now, everyone, run along now, better early than late for the parade!"

"But Sir, aren't you comin' to watch?" asked the same bunny.

"Of course I am, Peter. I'll be behind all of you, so hop to the main street and save some seats for us!" replied Robin, and the little bunny nodded enthusiastically. Soon, all the kids dashed off, and all yelled from a distance, "We'll get the best ones!"

"Those little rascals." a grown male rabbit dressed in a plain tunic and pants chuckled. "Robin! What brings you here?"

"Gilbert! It's been a while, eh?" exclaimed Robin pleasantly.

"Hohoho, and Little John! How's the belly doing?"

"Perfectly alright, Gil! How are your young'uns?" said Little John as he rubbed his stomach.

"Ah, there's Skippy, Alice, Pip, Flopps, Jimmy, Carle, the twins Beatri, Betty, then Ronald, Walt- My, who is that fella over there?" Gilbert stopped short when he spotted Nick standing beside Little John.

Nick remained silent while the rabbit looked at him from tip to toe. Robin then intervened with a candid grin, "You'll be surprised."

"Surprised?" uttered a turtle with a prolonged voice. "What could surprise me?"

"Ryker? If you're here, are Alan and old Friar Tuck with you?" Little John asked.

"Oh, yes, yes, at Otto's. I remembered Otto sayin' that Robin's arrows are ready." The turtle pointed towards a small house where smoke rose up from the chimney.

"Oo-de-Lally! I've been waitin'. Come, let's all head to our dear old blacksmith. I've got to introduce this laddie over here." Robin then quickly pulled Nick along and the turtle, rabbit, bear and two foxes reached the workshop in no time. All five of them burst through the creaky door, and skidded to a stop before they almost crashed into a dingy dining table. A rooster cocked-a-doodle in surprise, and a badger with thinning white brows fell off his chair. The fireplace blazed wildly, and next to it was a brown dog donning a red apron hammering away on red-hot iron. The blacksmith stopped his work abruptly and his eyes lit up when he realized who had come to visit.

"Little John, and Sir Robin! Oh, oh, oh, here are your arrows." said the dog, who hauled over four quivers filled with arrows that had tips masterfully crafted. Robin quickly went over and received them gratefully from the blacksmith. "Here's the payment." he said and handed five gold coins to blacksmith.

"Ah, both of you brought a queer company with you today." chimed the badger. "I suppose he's a young lad you've taken a liking to, Robin?"

"About that, Friar Tuck, I chanced upon him just this noon. Boy, was he surprisin'." Little John replied.

"For your info, I'm not a young lad. I'm at around the same age as Hood." Nick said loudly, making sure that no one thinks that he was some kid that was joining their ranks. He spied a hand action by Robin and with a sigh, he brought out his tail and unwrapped the head scarf as he mumbled, "And this thing. Is. Suffocating. Me."

A collective gasp went straight out of everyone's mouth, with the exception of Robin and Little John, both fox and bear having smug expressions.

"Good Lord." Otto said, his paws rubbing his eyes in disbelief. "Am I seeing what I'm seeing?"

"No worries, Otto, my friend." Gilbert said. "I don't believe it either."

The rooster strummed the strings of his mandolin like an out-of-control guitarist as his beak went open and closed repeatedly, his instrument producing a dangerous sort of background music.

"Aww, betcha all you're thinking is 'He looks so much like Robin Hood!' or 'He's Robin Hood's long lost twin!'. Very nice, very nice, so it'll be even nicer if all of you can stop goggling at me like that." said Nick in a falsetto voice with over-exaggerating hand gestures, and lastly, his eyes narrowed as he stared at the animals that had their jaws dropping open. The rooster, the badger, the rabbit, the turtle and the dog instantly shut their mouths and stood stiff.

"Thank you." Nick muttered. "I'm Wilde. Nick Wilde."

He then approached the badger, wanting to shake the flabbergasted animal's paw. Friar Tuck gave a tentative glance at Nick's paw, and then grabbed it firmly.

"Friar Tuck. I am sorely surprised."

"Gilbert Burrowell."

"R-Ryker S-S-Sheldon."

"Call me Alan-A-Dale, Mister Nick."

Nick shook hands with all of them with calmly. He was accustomed to handling others, even if they were some animals from the Middle Ages.

"Where are you from, Nick?" asked one of them.

"How did you come to Nottinghamshire?"

"What are these things?" asked Ryker, the turtle peering into his makeshift bag and spotted his gun, pawcuffs and uniform.

"Gentleanimals, pause the bombardment of questions. Don't forget that we have a parade comin' right up the main street! Let us save the questions for later." Robin cut in abruptly, and hurriedly ushered his fellow animals out of the door. Little John then glanced at Robin, and the fox quickly jerked his head towards Nick. The bear nodded in acknowledgement and closed the door, letting the remaining two foxes have a talk.

"Take a seat, Nick." offered Robin and Nick gingerly pulled a stool over. Robin did the same and both sat opposite of each other in stifled silence. Nick then drummed his paws on his lap nervously, since Robin was studying him meticulously, as if he was something of absolute rarity. The other fox then bent forward with much curiosity, and leaned back again with a smirk on his face. Robin clasped his paws together in obvious ecstasy, and inched closer to Nick bit by bit, until he opened his mouth to speak.

"So, where did you come from?" He asked eagerly.

"Who was it that said that the questions are to be saved for later? And I believe the parade is of more importance." Nick muttered blandly.

"Well, you know me. I dislike waiting, and the parade will do the waiting, not me."

"Well, as a matter of fact, I don't know you."

"Don't keep me hanging, laddie, answer me."

Nick contemplated for seconds, deciding on what should he reply. Saying he was from the future would be a tall tale in the ears of Robin, and he did not want to reveal anything of the future. A simplistic response will suffice.

"From a faraway place, called Zootopia. You've gotta take centuries to reach there."

"Fantastical. So, how'd you arrive in England? In Sherwood? There's never been an animal who can tread through a forest alone." remarked Robin as he brought his right paw to his chin.

Nick faltered. On the other hand, Robin remained in rapt attention.

"I can't explain it well." He finally broke out.

"Go on." encouraged Robin.

"I just... ended up here." sighed Nick. "I don't even know if I could go back to where I came from."

The silence returned like a moody blanket, thick and misty. Nick's ear drooped dejectedly, until the smooth voice of Robin Hood sailed out.

"Hiraeth." He said, the pristine word hushed and tender. Nick peeked up quizzically, and Robin's smile hinted a tinge of grief, the melancholy behind it unfamiliar and distant. "That was a word a friend of mine liked to say."

"Liked?"

"The poor bloke got himself killed." Robin breathed in deeply, his eyes moistening. "And he parted from me with this one word." The fox bit his lower lip and blinked away his tears. "Hiraeth. The feeling of homesickness for a home you can't return to, or that never was. Do you feel that?"

Nick pursed his lips tight, and mumbled, "I..."

"Do you miss anyone? Anyone you love?"

Memories flowed in uncontrollably, memories about the city he grew up in, his scamming days with Finnick, his first encounter with Flash, the days when Clawhauser treated him to sweet; too sweet doughnuts, that first time he met the Chief, the bull had looked so fearsome. His heart throbbed.

The feeling in his chest felt painful, heartbreaking even. He missed his home, and he had no way to know whether he could go back. He was missing Flash, his hustler buddy Finnick, Clawhauser and his doughnuts, all his fellow officers in the ZPD. Heck, he almost felt like missing the bull Chief.

But most of all, he missed Judy.

He recalled the fateful afternoon when she walked right next to him, right in front of the counter in Jumbeaux's Cafe. Her naive and over-optimistic self showing her police badge, and blackmailing the Elephant to sell him that Jumbo Pop.

"It's called a hustle, sweetheart."

"Oh, sweet cheese 'n crackers."

"Oh, you dumb fox."

"Do I know that? Yes, yes I do."

Her peppy voice repeated itself in his mind, rewinding and rewinding. Every thought of her not beside him was a stab to his vulnerability, the cracking of his soul. The conflicting emotions churning inside him felt so unreal, unnatural and it was like his world went upside down.

How long has it been since he saw her? Was it almost a day since he spoke her name? Or maybe even longer?

Nick shut his eyes closed, his paws clutching onto his chest in distress. He was nowhere near Zootopia, nowhere near home, nowhere near Judy.

"I... want to go back." he breathed.

"And you will." Robin replied as he stood up and pushed the stool back into place. "But for now, we shan't let the parade wait any longer."

Nick then looked up into the eyes of Robin. He was looking into the eyes of a future outlaw. When will it be, remained an unfounded mystery.

Robin Hood was the most difficult conundrum of Medieval England. He and his Merry Animals were enigmatic like the night. And Nick was not going to show any vulnerability, not to Medieval England.

Not to Robin Hood and his Merry Animals.

"Hood." Nick said. "I want to get something straight."

Robin's hand paused before the door handle, and he turned around, the same inexplicable grin on his face again. "Go ahead." he said.

"I joined you, to ensure _my_ survival, and _I_ , not in the least, trust you. Or your merry band of friends."

Robin Hood paused for a moment, and then his eyes went half-lidded, and his mouth curled into the same smirk as Nick.

"Well, I expected that. No sane animal will trust a mere stranger, especially when the other is a fox, such as myself." Robin answered with a peculiar confidence, "But, my good Nick, I'll make you trust me."

* * *

The headscarf itched. It tickled his snout and he wanted to tear it off his face. Dang, now it's prickling him. Nick grunted uncomfortably as he adjusted the cloth. And his tail that was wrapped around his abdomen made him look like some idiot. Was he going to have to keep up this appearance for the rest of the day?

The other animals were dressed much more plainly, with most only wearing loose and baggy tunics that had a dull range of grey, brown and a dirty yellow. When Robin had mingled into the crowd, many of them bowed to him and parted a big space for him, clearly showing that his look-alike was someone of pretty high status. When Nick had took upon himself to stand next to the Locksley lord, many were giving Nick suspicious glances, some almost death-glaring at him. Meanwhile, Robin was just conversing with Little John, both animals laughing as they talked. Nick sighed, feeling more and more dreaded. He was exhausted, both physically and emotionally, and yet he was stuck here.

He could only hope that no more trouble would come his way.

Suddenly, the blare of trumpets rang down the main street and many animals stuck their heads out in expectation and delight. Robin then elbowed Nick lightly, and the fox shuffled forward and observed the large stone gate. At the top, big elephants dressed in pink and blue outfits were lined up orderly, all of them playing the same bright melody over and over again. It took another whole minute for the first soldier to walk under the structure, and soon, a whole troop of rhinos marched out, in perfect coordination as their arms swung with exact angles. Then the horses trotted out majestically, with stocky knights sitting on their saddles that wore chainmails and helmets that completely covered their bodies and faces. The crowd wasn't much, but cheers continued to reverberate throughout Nottingham, and many were throwing their arms in the air in exuberance.

Soon after, a beautiful white stallion with the color of snow strode out, adorned with a sleek black leather saddle and sitting atop it, was a lion.

At the sight of their king, the crowd went wild.

"Long live King Richard! Long live King Richard!"

Nick stared at the regal lion, who had a thick, well-groomed mane that fell perfectly on his shoulders, and was wearing a regal-looking armor. The King of England waved to the commoners, and the sense of dignity he had was nothing less of a ruler.

The whole army continued to march on, and the King continued to ride his stallion, until Nick realized that the lion was looking at someone.

The fox turned to his right, and found Robin meeting the King's eyes.

His look-alike then went down on one knee, and bowed down deeply.

Little John did the same.

A badger followed.

So did a chicken.

And immediately after, the whole stretch of animals prostrated, in respect to their beloved King. Nick hurriedly did the same, for he did not want to stick out like a sore thumb.

King Richard raised a hand and yelled in a most sonorous voice.

"Halt!"

A single collective stamp, and the army froze.

Nick's heart palpitated wildly and sweated profusely as he picked up the sound of incoming footsteps. He could not comprehend the uneasiness that churned in his gut, and neither could he comprehend why was King Richard walking towards them. The footsteps stopped and Nick shifted his head slightly forward and sneaked a peek. The lion stood before Robin.

"Raise your head, Sir Robin of Locksley."

From the corner of his eye, Nick saw Robin, who appeared perfectly calm, gazing up at the King.

"You've done great service, my valiant knight. It pains me, that you are not to join me today." said the lion.

"I deserve no such praise, Your Majesty." Robin answered slowly, as if he was picking out the right words to say.

"Yet I don't believe I am one who speaks of falsehood."

"Certainly, Your Majesty. I am most grateful for the words you bestowed on me." He replied. "I pray for your safe return."

"And I shall leave Nottingham in your hands whilst I am away. Do not let me down."

With with the clanking of armor, the lion turned and walked back to his stallion. Nick waited for the army to start moving once more, before he finally dared to raise his head. He quickly pulled down his headscarf and turned to Robin.

"Knight? You were a knight!?"

"Rob jolly well was one, Nicky Nick. Fought during the previous two Crusades, and had even-" Little John whispered excitedly.

"Johnny. No more." warned Robin. "Not one more word about those bloody wars. And Nick, hide your face."

The bear went oddly quiet, while all the other animals had erupted into a festive mood once again, with colors waving about in the air and the whole street continued with its mix of music and fun. Meanwhile, Robin turned around and got ready to leave.

"Aren't you staying to watch?" Nick blurted out.

"There's nothing else to see. You can stay with Little John if you like."

The fox walked away. Nick gazed at Robin's figure moving away into a distance, before he switched his attention to the parade. The whole line of soldiers seemed to never end, and boredom was quickly getting to him as his eyes went half-shut. He was not quite the patient type and soon he was yawning.

A furry finger poked him on the shoulder, and Nick turned around, just to see Little John pointing in the direction where Robin was headed towards.

"I'll catch up. Go along now, Nick."

Nick nodded, and after dusting away the dirt on his pants, he ran off.

* * *

Pulling down his headscarf, Nick quickly wipe away the sweat that had accumulated on his fur and plodded down the gritty path. He turned his head left and right, trying to spot the striking red fur of Robin Hood.

He ran, with his tail swishing left and right, and then he stopped for a few seconds of rest.

The streets of Nottingham were mostly void of people, since everyone was at the main street. No matter where Nick went, his surroundings looked the same and for the first time of his life, he was lost.

Nick searched the pungent alleyways, the filthy corners, and winded up and down the road, but he saw no one. Giving up on any hope to find Robin, Nick decided to trace back his steps and return to Little John.

However, not even three steps forward, his nose picked up the scent of an animal. Was it Robin?

Nick sniffed again. And he blinked his eyes in incredulity. Feeling uncertain, he sniffed once more. There was no mistake, it was a wolf.

Nick Wilde swiftly tightened his scarf and masked his face. He quickened his pace, while praying that trouble will not come his way.

After some brisk walking, he stole a look behind him and his face scrunched up in disgust.

The wolf was behind him. It had a bulging stomach, larger than Little John's, and wore a fancy long red tunic that had puffy purple sleeves that made the big animal appeared fatter. Around his waist was a shiny silver belt, and he wore a long necklace that had a gold and round medallion. His way of walking irked Nick, for his every step was exaggerated with elaborate hand swings, and his stomach was distracting with it bouncing up and down. He could not help but wonder what did the plump wolf eat to produce that belly.

Nick looked ahead, hoping that the wolf would take no notice of him.

"Why, if it isn't the chivalrous Sir Robin of Locksley!"

Nick gritted his teeth and smacked his head when he realized the blunder he had made.

He left his tail untucked.


	4. Chapter 4

Nick Wilde was in quite the dilemma. He was in a crossroad. A dangerous crossroad where his actions could possibly cause history to go wrong, or if he was lucky enough, let everything continue on track.

The wolf was inching closer, and his every step forward seemed to quicken the fox's heartbeat, or maybe made it stop for a second or two. Nick had always been quite the escapist, as opposed to Judy, who liked to approach problems head-on. It was not like he disapproved the way the bunny cop handled cases, but it just did not fit himself. He prefer to regroup, think, then act. Truly, there was nothing wrong with that.

"Fancy you being so quiet. Cat's got your tongue?" The wolf said. "Or is it that you're too afraid to speak to the mighty Sheriff?"

Nick discerned the wolf's identity right away. A wolf. Sheriff.

The Sheriff of Nottingham. One of Robin Hood's enemies. Nick knew his history facts. He was acting like a snob, and Nick was already starting to dislike him.

"And I see that you're unable to show me your face! I know, I'm way too dazzling for the eyes of the unworthy, such as yourself, Robin Hood." The wolf snarled with contempt.

The situation was forcing him to act immediately. The fox closed his eyes. Think, Nick, think! What will Judy do?

Nick blinked as a thought surfaced in his mind.

What will Robin Hood do?

Following that thought, it took only a split second for him to conjure up an idea in his mind.

He just have to be Robin Hood.

Clasping his hands together, Robin turned around, brought his headscarf down and said amiably, "Good day, Sheriff, couldn't recognize you for a moment there, with you looking so... stunning! Your fur's looking impeccable!"

The wolf blinked his eyes, before his lips curled up with glee.

"So you've noticed!" The wolf replied smugly. "I combed it myself."

"Isn't that nice. I did not see you at the parade."

"O-Oh, I am a busy Sheriff after all." The Sheriff answered as his eyes shifted to his left.

"Mmm, my, my! Been hardworking at patrolling, as usual?"

"Eh?" The wolf stopped short. "The patrol? Er, er, it's good... n-no trouble g-going on." The Sheriff fidgeted slightly, his paws stuffing deep into his bulging pockets.

Ah-ha. Nick thought. He could guess what was inside.

"Expected of the Sheriff! No one dares to make trouble when you're on the streets!" Nick said. "By the way, did you get those apples from the fruit stall? The pigeon lady must have been real thankful for your services."

"O-of c-course!" The Sheriff stammered, and as if trying to boost his declining confidence, the wolf shouted, "I'm the mighty Sheriff of Nottingham after all!"

"Well, I suppose that the mighty Sheriff of Nottingham is currently very, very busy with his work."

"Yes, I a-"

"So, I shan't hold you up any longer! You have your patrol, and I have my business. Good day again, Sheriff."

"Uh-oh-uh, a-alright."

Nick turned around and walked away, trying to keep his pace as natural as possible. That went fairly well, but he has to get out of the wolf's sight to be hundred percent safe.

"Wait."

Nick froze, beads of sweat rolling down his face. What went wrong? His acting was probably perfect, so what now?

"You've dropped something."

Nick glanced over, and all breath was sucked away from him in that instance. The Sheriff was now bending down to pick up the object he dropped.

Nick frantically dashed back, and dove towards the object, startling the Sheriff, who lost his balance and landed heavily on his bum.

There was one thing Nick must prevent the Sheriff from laying his eyes on.

His name tag.

It must have gone loose and dropped from his uniform.

"Yer gone mad, Hood?" The Sheriff yelled.

"No, no, no, I just slipped." Nick laughed awkwardly. "Silly me, I'll take my leave now."

"Is that so? Alright then."

Nick stuffed his nametag properly into his pockets, and got ready to get away from this wolf. As far away as possible.

"Wait."

Nick groaned loudly in his mind. This whole business is making him so jittery that he felt like an idiot. Calm down, he told himself. There was no need to rush. Right now, he is acting as Robin Hood, nothing more than tha-

"There's something weird about you today, Hood."

Nick felt as if all his bodily functions were shutting down immediately.

'You weren't wearing those clothes during the parade, were you?"

Nick tried to even out his breathing.

"And you sound different."

Now his paws felt clammy from sweating.

"Are you having a cold?"

The fox did not know what to feel. Relief? Shocked? Currently, he was trying to decide which.

Relieved that the wolf was dumb? Or shocked that the wolf was dumb?

Either way, he was fortunately still within the safe zone. He faked a cough, and with a raspy voice, he said, "Indeed, all that dust back there made my throat worse. And these clothes? Extra warmth, see? Now, if you'll excuse me."

He advanced forward as swiftly as he could.

"I hope you never get well, Robin of Locksley!"

What an awfully rude fellow. Where was the Sir? Surely Robin was of higher status than him.

Nick shook his head. Leave the idle thoughts for the last.

And off he went.

Meanwhile, the Sheriff stuck a finger into his nose, and upon digging out a booger, he flicked it away nonchalantly. Then, he took out one apple from his pocket, rubbed it against his tunic, and bit it, making loud, noisy crunching noises as he chewed. Scratching his chin, he wondered out loud to himself,

"Wasn't that fox's eyes green? Maybe the cold made it looked that way! Serves him right!"

After swallowing that last bit of the apple, he dropped the core onto the filthy road, and went off scavenging for more food in those unattended stalls.

* * *

"Phew." Nick sighed. He finally lost the scent of the wolf. That kind of situation was bad for his heart. It made him wonder how could Judy always tackle them with such ease.

Judy.

He shut his eyes tight, his paws scratching the ground. Breathing out loudly, his eyes opened slowly. He reached into his pockets, and took out his name tag.

Nick gently touched the tag, it's golden shine reflecting the sunlight. The letters "WILDE" were engraved on it. Turning over, he realized why the tag came off.

The clip was bent, damaged and no longer usable. Nick flipped it around, and stared at it.

This was his only proof. His only proof that he was Nicholas Piberius Wilde. Not some outlaw called Robin Hood. This name tag was his reminder that he was himself. The least he needed was an identity crisis in Medieval England.

Now, he had to continue his search for the other fox.

"Wasn't that something, Nicky Nick." A familiar voice called out from above.

Nick looked up and almost choked on his own saliva.

"Hood! You!"

Meanwhile, Robin Hood was standing coolly on the edge of the roof directly above him, bending over as he smirked. Nick frowned. This fox had been watching ever since the beginning.

"It's not wrong for me to walk on roofs, is there?" Robin said.

"Tch. You could have helped." Nick muttered as he put his paws into his pockets.

"There's no need for me to interfere. T'was a splendid performance, even I was fooled into thinking that you were Robin Hood."

"I'm not." Nick barked. "I'll never be you."

"Are you sure?" Robin asked with a certain calmness. "You could be Robin Hood, while I could be Nick Wilde. You're me, and I'm you."

"What are you trying to imply?" Nick said as he narrowed his eyes. Robin's smirk disappeared immediately, and he looked at Nick sternly.

"We look like each other. Do you know what this means?"

Nick paused, and replied, "No."

Robin sighed, and spoke softly, just audible enough for Nick to hear.

"I have my own fair share of enemies, Nick. With His Majesty gone, they are restless. I'm in a dangerous situation, and so are ye. If someone were to target my life, they will target yours."

The fox then jumped down, and softly landed before Nick, who was pursing his lips, brows knitting together.

"I'm not a saint, Nick. If you are lackin' in ability, I can't let you stay. You can hide somewhere, far, far away, or you can learn to survive here in Nottinghamshire. Which will you choose?"

Nick's paw gripped onto his tag. He stared into Robin's black eyes, and before long, his lips turned up into a smirk, eyes half-lidded as he said, "Hey, Hood. Foxes are omnivores, right?"

"We jolly well are."

"Then I'll take whatever chances I have, so teach me how to survive."

Robin gave a hearty laugh, and said, "Good answer, laddie. So, are yer ready for lessons?"

Nick chuckled.

"I don't suppose I can say no."

"You catch on quick, fox."

"You too, fox."

Both Robin Hood and Nick Wilde laughed their loudest that very afternoon.

* * *

Finnick slurped his beer, and smacked his lips after he gulped down the liquid. Now that's some good stuff.

He reclined against his seat, casually taking his sunglasses from the side compartment and wore it suavely. He stared out of his windshield, finding the sun so blinding and bright. There was no way he could nap in such conditions.

Whipping out his PawPhone, he typed in his PIN number and then proceeded to look at the weather forecast. He had to search for somewhere that he could relax without a care in the world.

He swiped the screen repeatedly, giving out a low, annoyed growl every single time he was greeted with bad weather. Heavy rain in Rainforest District, sunny in Sahara Square, cloudy with a chance of rain in Marshlands, Hail in Tundratown. Little Rodentia, Nocturnal Nightspot was a definite no-no, since he would have a chance of getting fined, Outback Islands were way too far (he'll need to take a boat to get there), and the Meadowlands were too green for him, City Hall was too noisy, and all that was left for him, was here.

Glancing at the time at the edge of his screen, he gritted his teeth impatiently. Two more hours for the afternoon sun to be gone. Finnick picked up his can, and tilted it, only to find two measly droplets of beer left for him. Grumbling, he threw it backwards, where the can hit the back of his van with a dull clank.

His phone vibrated. Perking his ears, Finnick brought the notification bar down. He blinked his eyes in surprise, for before him, the following words were stated: Updating "PJE"...

He sat upright and waited for the update bar to be filled up. This had caught him off guard. For the whole week, he had been trying to beat the game, and had frankly lost his interest in it. But for it to have an update? Now, that'll kill his time.

So what do you have in store for me, buggy game? Finnick thought to himself, as he entered the app.

The same simplistic title and design. Finnick clicked his tongue, feeling rather cheated. There was not any obvious changes. Irritated, he pressed the "Play" button, then the "Yes".

Choose a character.

Finnick was looking more and more bored by the second. It was the same character, Robin Hood. Sighing, he got ready to exit the app, until he spied a certain irregularity in the screen. It was the addition of a new character.

Scrolling horizontally, he arrived at this new silhouette. At first glance, it had the shape of a fox, and at the second glance, Finnick the fennec fox was dumbstruck.

He gaped at the name labelled below the character in incredulity. There was no way.

It was the silhouette of a fox. No doubt.

It was the silhouette of a familiar fox. Doubtful enough.

The same lazy pose, the same sunglasses, the same bushy tail.

And the name was the same.

Nicholas P. Wilde.

With a skeptical eye, Finnick stared at the character. Why was Nick in this game? Is he one of the creators of the game?

He waved that thought away. There was no way, Nick was busy enough with his police duties.

So why?

Finnick tentatively pressed the silhouette. The screen faded to white.

And the game began.

He controlled the character, up and forward, crossing over the numerous stages. If this was similar to his experience when Robin Hood was used, other characters will appear over the stages.

They did.

Friar Tuck, Alan-A-Dale, baby bunnies, Maid Marian, the Sheriff, the Crocodile Castle Guard Captain, Prince John of England.

There was even a never before seen character in one of the stages. Finnick strained his eyes to look at the tiny letters of its name.

"Guy... of... Gisborne?" Finnick mumbled under his breath. He frowned, and continued through the stages.

Robin Hood never appeared.

Finnick held his breath as he approached the last stage. He had an uncomfortable feeling in his gut, and it did not felt good.

"Begone! You vile fox!"

"Usurper! Thief!"

"Die, you sly fox!"

It was exactly the same. Yet, the only difference was that Maid Marian never showed up. The whole thing was getting stranger and stranger.

All the silhouettes came closer to Nick, the same spears in hand, and with one hefty push, they impaled the fox figure. A strangled cry rang out from the phone's speaker.

Finnick could not take it anymore. He violently threw his phone to the next seat and tried to collect himself. He almost felt like vomiting out his lunch.

Seeing his best friend getting murdered, albeit virtually, was not what he expected. Who in the world would play such a sick joke?

Grabbing his PawPhone, he checked the screen, which had already returned to the title page. He glanced at the time, and indeed, two hours had passed, and the sun was certainly gone. He could sleep now.

Not.

A nearby pig yelped in surprise when the reddish-orange van skidded down the pavement in a flurry. She managed to jump to her safety in the nick of time, and there she yelled, "Hey, watch it!"

Finnick did not care about the pig as he blatantly ignored her and proceeded to race down the road that led towards City Hall. Meanwhile, on the adjacent seat, the phone continued to vibrate.

"Damn you, Nick! Pick up the damn phone!" Finnick shouted as he weaved through the vehicles, curses hurled at him. His van tooted black smoke, and jerked uncontrollably. He had no time to lose.

Not when his best friend might be in danger.

Suddenly, a time waster popped out onto the road, carrying his light stick that flashed again and again. The rhinoceros meter maid blew his whistle again and again, annoying Finnick to the max. He jumped down from his seat to step on the brake, and the van managed to stop before it crashed into the bulky mammal. The rhino quickly recovered from his shock, and went to the side of the van. Finnick begrudgingly rolled down his window, and glared at the meter maid.

"Kiddo, you're charged with underage driving and-"

Finnick's face instantly went red.

"I'm in my thirties, you goddamn rhino!"

* * *

"Here we are." Robin announced.

Nick gasped in wonder as he laid his eyes onto the majestic oak. It's branches curled outwards, twisting and carrying volumes of leaves that swayed in the wind. It's impossibly thick trunk appeared thrice as large as Clawhauser's width, and had a deep umber brown color. It was almost as if he was in a fantasy setting.

This place was right smack in the middle of Sherwood Forest, and before him, was the famous Major Oak that was recorded in his history textbook for being the shelter of Robin Hood and his Merry Animals.

"Marvel upon it, laddie. This tree is our hideout!" Robin shouted excitedly with outstretched arms. "And this is where you'll sleep, eat, and learn everything I know."

"How about bathing?" Nick asked as he quirked an eyebrow.

"At that lake. You can find it easily with that nose of yours." chuckled Robin.

"Cool, cool. What's next?"

Robin Hood skipped towards the thick trunk, where there was a curtain of green growth against it. He pulled it with his paws, revealing a small hole that seemed to be their storage space. The fox reached inside, and pulled out a long sword.

He tossed the sword over to Nick, who yelped and tried to get hold of the hilt. He certainly did not want to get hurt by that sharp edge.

"Sword fightin'." Robin replied.

"What!?" Nick opened his mouth in shock.

"En Garde!" shouted the other fox, and suddenly he ran towards Nick, another sword in hand. Flustered, Nick brandished his sword randomly, as if trying to ward off flies. Robin swung down the weapon, and Nick raised his, blocking the attack, with the sound of hitting metal reverberating in the air. It did not stop there, as Robin swung down continuously, forcing Nick on the defensive. Nick gritted his teeth as he tried to hold his ground, as every blow dealt on the blade threatened to make his knees buckle.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Yer all over the place, Nicky Nick." Robin commented, his attacks not at all letting up.

"I never held a sword before, Hood! And stop calling me that!" Nick protested. Finally unable to hold out, he fell to the ground with a painful thud. The sword clattered as it hit the ground, and Nick whimpered.

"We'll need to work on that then. How about shootin'?" Robin asked as he held a hand out, in which Nick thankfully took it and stood up. Patting the dirt off his pants, Nick smirked and answered, "I do have some confidence in it. And wait, where are your quivers?"

"Oh, I came back here just now to put them in the tree hole. Why? Did ya think I can magically make it disappear or somethin'?" Robin laughed mildly, before he continued, "Anyways, I'll lend you my bow, so show me how good you are."

"Not the bow." Nick said proudly as he whipped out his gun from his makeshift bag. "With this."

"That plaything?" Robin exclaimed with a skeptical expression.

Nick stared at the other fox with half-lidded eyes as a huge grin formed on his face.

"Oh ho ho ho, it won't be wise for you to underestimate my gun." He said as he wagged his finger.

"Alright then. Shoot the smallest branch of that tree." Robin said as he pointed towards a fairly large tree, striking with it's orange-brown leaves, that was around forty feet away. Nick turned to look, and found his target.

He was quite confident in his shooting abilities, no, he was very confident.

His shooting skills was one of the best in the force after all.

After disengaging the safety and racking the slide, Nick aimed the gun at the branch. His green eyes went incredibly focused.

Target locked.

Nick Wilde pulled the trigger. A loud bang resounded throughout Sherwood Forest, while a single bullet whizzed forward.

Silence.

An audible crack was heard by both foxes, and forty feet before them, a thin branch dropped solemnly on the ground.

Nick rubbed the gunpowder on his paws. He turned to look at Robin, whose eyes were wide from surprise.

"Impressive." The other fox said.

"Why, thank you."

"But can you do it with a bow?"

"Er... No."

"Then you should." Robin huffed as he headed to the tree hole. It took him less than ten seconds to take out a bow and a single arrow.

"My gun has more power than your bow and arrow." Nick scoffed while he crossed his arms.

"That won't last long, laddie." Robin said as he nocked the arrow. "And it won't be wise for ya to underestimate my skills."

Robin Hood breathed out, then he raised and drew his bow.

"Watch and learn." He said with a mysterious smirk.

* * *

 **Once again, thank you for the many follows and reviews. I appreciate them a lot. Hope that you have enjoyed this chapter. If there are any irregularities, or errors, etc, please notify me :)**


	5. Chapter 5

Benjamin Clawhauser had quite a normal day. In the morning, he arrived at the ZPD at the same time like every other day, and plopped himself in his comfy swivel chair behind the receptionist desk, gluing himself to it as he stared at the other cops that were slowly filing in. He waved and greeted the usual good morning to them, and his colleagues all returned the greeting cheerily. Thieves, burglars, shoplifters came in afterwards, the numbers fortunately remaining at a single digit. He took a few calls, and wrote up brief reports, then chatted with the cops that had completed their morning duties. Those done, he finally rolled out of his chair and ambled off to get his lunch at the nearby doughnuts store Croustillant Crème.

But in the end, it was only "quite" a normal day.

Being a cop in the ZPD basically translates to abnormalities in his life. Even if he only sits at the reception counter the whole day.

Oh, right, and acting as a radio dispatcher.

Plodding back to his counter, with four boxes of assorted donuts in paws, Clawhauser let out a yawn and scratched his chin with a blunt claw. He was expecting something. Expecting an abnormality to occur.

Look, Judy Hopps ended up in the hospital, Nick Wilde disappeared, surely another abnormality will occur, sooner or later.

For example, a vertically challenged fennec fox standing on the counter, and staring down at a horizontally challenged cheetah.

Clawhauser immediately choked on his pink-frosted sprinkled doughnuts, rainbow sprinkles flying all around. He pounded his chest hard, his loud coughing catching the attention of the few cops and civilians that were walking around in the ZPD lobby, doing who knows what, all of them unaware that the mini-sized fox, with large ears, was standing on the counter.

The fox looked at Clawhauser, looking unimpressed, before he crossed his arms.

"Awww, look at you, so tiny and cute!" Clawhauser immediately exclaimed after he regained his composure. "Are you lost, kid-"

The fox shot a piercing glare at Clawhauser, a vein popping out on his forehead.

"-Sir?"

"That's better." said the fox, his low, grumpy voice surprising Clawhauser. "Honestly, I had enough of screaming at others that I am in my thirties."

"Um... er... so, are you sure you are in your thirties? You definitely look like you are six-"

Another glare.

"Don't make me punch you, kid." Finnick growled.

"Eeek! I'm sorry Sir, what business do you have in the ZPD?" Clawhauser cried out, before he nervously munched on another doughnut, a chocolate one, to calm his nerves.

"Where is Nick?" Finnick hissed as he inched closer to Clawhauser, the cheetah chewing harder on his doughnut.

"Mrrooorick?" Clawhauser muttered as he bit into his tenth doughnut, this time, one topped with blueberry jam and raspberry bits.

"Yes, Nicholas Wilde! Do you need me to spell it out for you?"

"Mmmrrh, are you buddies?" Clawhauser said, after swallowing the food.

"Ugh, or else why would I ask for him? I've called him more than fifteen times, and he's just never picking up! And that bunny cop! The one called Judy! Her too! If she's here, tell her to come out and meet me, I have something urgent to tell the both of them!"

"Um..."

"What?"

"Uh... Nick... Judy... they..."

"Arghhh, stop mumbling and spit it out!" Finnick yelled as he stomped on the counter.

"... No... Uh..."

"What is it!? You're driving me crazy!"

"Nick's gone and Judy's in the hospital!" Clawhauser finally shouted, as he stood up, both paws banging on the counter. "The Chief said that Nick disappeared from sewers underneath Nocturnal Nightspot and Judy got zapped by a Taser and now she's hospitalized! Stop stressing me out!"

The cheetah gasped for air, and evened out his breathing, and soon he slumped back into his chair, re-sticking himself to the seat. He glanced at Finnick's face, shock written all over the fox's face. Clawhauser sighed, before he grabbed another doughnut and gulped it down in one bite.

"… Hospital…"

Clawhauser gazed at Finnick, blinking his eyes twice, until the fox suddenly leaned over, snout against his own. The cheetah's eyes widened in surprise, as he found himself staring at the furious fire burning within Finnick, teeth clenched, canines out, the fox clearly in a very agitated mood.

"Which hospital? Ward number?" Finnick said in a threatening tone, shaking Clawhauser's nerves. The cheetah hesitated for a while, before he finally relented. His stocky, short arm fervently reached out for the thin stack of documents lying on the far end of the counter, and after scrambling for a short while, he retrieved a small, neon yellow sticky note, words and numbers scribbled on it.

"Y-You know, I'm not supposed to do this… the Chief will… Kill me! Like literally!" Clawhauser muttered under his breath. "I, Benjamin Clawhauser, an innocent doughnut fanatic, ZPD cop and radio dispatcher, to die at such a young age, ooh, how tragic."

"What's tragic is your body! How do you, a cheetah, even run fast with those jiggling fats?" Finnick retorted.

"A cheetah runs fast? That's some stereotype right there! I'm a cheetah! A FAT cheetah! I don't run fast!" Clawhauser cried out, looking rather offended.

"Yeah, yeah." Finnick replied nonchalantly as his eyes scanned the sticky note, where the words "Tundra Verity Hospital" and "Ward 7-12" were written. After shoving the paper into his pocket, he jumped off the counter.

Clawhauser stood up and his belly pressed against the edge of the counter as he looked over, finding the tiny fennec fox walking off.

"Hey, wait a-"

"You won't get killed, doofus. Just show that Chief of yours ZPD Crime Records file number 1463, he'll know." Finnick said without turning over his head. "Then you'll can just say that I hustled the information out of you."

"Uh... Sure."

Soon, the fennec fox was gone, while Benjamin Clawhauser stood there for minutes, as he tried to process what he had just heard.

"Crime Records? File Number 1463? Hang on..."

As realization dawned over Clawhauser, he lost his balance, and plopped perfectly into his chair.

"Did I... Just failed to arrest a criminal?" He gasped in horror, paws clapping over his wide-opened mouth.

* * *

"So... what exactly are you doing?" Nick asked, as he gazed at the trees standing around haphazardly, left and right, near and far, and each of them had an arrow plunged right in the middle of their trunks.

"You'll see." Robin replied, as he gave a quick wink to Nick, all the while shooting another arrow to a faraway tree. Nick held his breath, as the arrow landed on the target, so silent and loud at the same time.

It did not take long for Nick to admit that Robin Hood was every bit of the archer he was.

Just minutes before, Robin had shot down one branch, sixty feet away.

Then another, seventy feet away.

Both branches went down. With a single arrow.

Nick couldn't catch it. Before he could even blink, the arrow had already left the bow, so fast and sudden that it had left him stunned for seconds. He turned his head, and before he knew it, the arrow had already arced over, a beautiful arc, up then down, and in one single motion it had shot down two targets.

He wowed. He seriously wowed out loud, an action that is completely unlike his character. Even if he had never tried archery before, he knew.

Robin Hood's archery was charming. Bewitching. His skills were almost magical, as he fired off all those arrows consecutively, like a rifle. His accuracy was near phenomenal, as all the arrows would hit right smack into the middle of the trunks, not one arrow missing the mark. Even though sometimes he did not look at the target and was instead firing off his mouth, his shots still landed, as if the arrowheads were attracted to the targets themselves.

And that speed. It was not on par with a bullet, but it was quick enough for him to lose sight of the arrow in a second. Robin's arrows were eagles, the arrowheads as sharp as their beaks and as strong as their talons, the shaft as streamlined as their bodies, the fletching as sleek as the tail feathers, and the wings, invisible, yet holding such a force that Nick could see the illusion of black feathers expanding outwards, soaring across the air.

He imagined himself as one of the targets. As a prey.

The short simulation in his head was enough to understand how helpless he would be. He would just be standing there, and the very moment those razor sharp talons grabbed him by the neck, or when the beak impaled his heart, his life would have ended.

He glanced at his gun. Indeed, like what Robin had said, his gun wouldn't last long. There was only four bullets left, after all.

His thoughts trailed, until his breath was sliced, his heartbeat mercilessly stopped, his eyes snapping wide open. An arrow had whizzed past him, so precociously close to him that he could feel a few hairs being hacked away by the sharp beak, and time had ticked away so agonizingly that the taste of death was creeping up his tongue.

That was what most people would term as a "near-death experience".

But to Nick, it was as if he had experienced death itself.

His knees buckled from the shock, and he fell onto his bum. For a long time, he could not react, his jaw hanging slightly open as he stared blankly into space. He finally found his bearings, realizing that the one who had shot the arrow was none other than Robin Hood himself.

"Hood… Wha-Why…" Nick mustered, as his heartbeat sped up momentarily and he gasped for air, chest heaving up and down uncontrollably.

"You weren't payin' attention." Robin said, his tone oddly serious.

"You don't need to shoot-!"

"Listen lad, I'll need ye to hide immediately. Go up that large tree o'er there and use the thick foliage to hide yer scent. Someone's comin'."

Nick frowned, rather confused, but nevertheless he stood up and without further ado, he climbed up the tree nearby and planted himself firmly on the thickest branch he could find, checking that the leaves were covering him nicely.

The branch was neither too high nor too low, providing him the perfect view. He breathed slowly, and then he caught the scent of an animal, not Little John, not Alan-a-Dale, not Friar Tuck, not any of the animals he met earlier.

He observed Robin, who had picked up the sword that was lying on the ground. The fox had a steely gaze in his eyes, serious and meticulous as they scrutinized the surroundings, a chilling silence hanging over the trees.

It all happened in a blur.

The assassin jumped out into the clearing, his black cloak billowing behind him, and he unsheathed his rapier swiftly, the long blade dancing as it swung down again and again. Sword and rapier clashed in parries, the exchange of blows rapid and torrential.

The blades hit, and both animals jumped away. Robin skidded to a stop, while the other nimbly grabbed a low tree branch, and swung himself up. He squatted there, his cloak covering most of his appearance, but in the end, it was impossible to hide that long snout, bushy tail and silvery gray fur.

There was no mistake. The assassin is a fox.

A gray fox.

Suddenly, the gray fox turned his head over and Nick held the urge to gasp when he looked at his direction. The assassin's black beady eyes stared straight at him and for a moment there, Nick thought that they had made eye contact. But the gray fox soon turned his head back, and instead spoke to Robin.

"That's some mighty fine sword skills you have there, Robin Hood."

It was a deep, husky voice, and there was a mysterious feeling to it.

"I'd say the same to you." Robin replied, the grip on his sword hilt not at all loosening. "Who sent you?"

"Someone that wants you dead."

"Which one?"

"That's for you to guess."

"I s'pose that I need not guess yer name?"

The gray fox chuckled. He sheathed his rapier, and then he nodded his head.

"Guy of good Gisborne." He said, "We'll meet again, Robin Hood."

He jumped away, onto the next tree, and disappeared in a whirlwind of leaves. Robin let out a huff, before he motioned Nick to come down.

Nick carefully slid down the rough tree trunk, and walked towards Robin, while brushing the leaves off his head and clothes. Robin sighed deeply, before he turned to look at Nick, all signs of seriousness seemingly vanished along with that sigh.

"That was quite the interruption, aye? Pardon me for shootin' you, it was quite a… urgent situation. Now, movin' on." Robin said cheerfully. "Now, about all these arrows,"

"Someone just tried to kill you!" Nick pointed out, looking bewildered, "How can you stay so calm?"

"Why not? This is only one out of the many assassination attempts made on me. Of course I can stay calm." Robin replied quickly, before he used his sword to stab the ground. The sword went in deep into the soil with a crunch, and stayed there, unmoving.

"Rather," He continued. "I won't be calm if none tried ter assassinate me."

"That's…" began Nick.

"Saddenin', isn't it?" Robin said. "But that's the world we live in. Septic with wars, fights, famine, poverty, and whatnot. Isn't that the same for your world?"

"M-My world?"

"Oh, don't think that I don't know. Little John may be slow on things, but I'm not. Yer from somewhere." Robin said as he wiggled a finger. "Definitely not England, but neither are you from France, Germany or Prussia, or any of the neighboring lands. Yer black beauty, yer clothes, yer way of speech, it isn't all that hard to guess that you're ain't an ordinary foreigner."

Nick kept quiet, averting his gaze.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." Robin said reassuringly. "I won't bite."

Nick nodded.

"Now then, about these arrows, they are markings. You will train wherever you find my arrows. Do not go beyond that last tree over there. Sherwood Forest isn't forgiving. Once you get lost, that's it. That sword is a reminder. When it's shadow is headin' straight towards that tree over there, time's up" Robin warned. "Cease any sorta training at sundown."

"Fine by me. So, what do we start with?" Nick asked.

"This." Robin replied, throwing him the bow towards Nick, who caught it easily.

The bow was exceedingly simple, just a long curved wood, with a string drawn at the ends. Surprisingly, it fitted snugly in his paws. Nick examined it, flipping it to different sides.

"We're starting with shooting straightaway?"

"Wrong." Robin replied. "You won't be shootin' anythin' anytime soon."

"So what am I supposed to do with this?" Nick cried out, as he glanced at the bow.

"Simple. Pull it."

"Pull it?" Nick uttered, a very unconvinced look plastered on his face.

"Yup. Pull it everyday. You want to learn archery, so must know the bow. What you're holdin' right now is the longbow. Familiarize yerself with it, get the tension behind the string, hold it, stretch it."

"That's it?"

"You might want to do some arm strength training. Despite how it looks, the bow isn't easy to draw. And maybe some running around." Robin added. "Now then, it's getting late, I should leave."

Nick took at a glance at the sword. Indeed, the shadow was approaching the axis. Time was up.

"Get a good rest! We will start with your shootin' form first thing in the morning tomorrow."

The fox brushed past Nick, and back-waving, he sauntered off.

Meanwhile, Nick was just frozen there, the longbow within his paws, tamed, nothing out of the ordinary. After a long while, Nick finally snapped back to reality. He frantically turned around, but Robin Hood was long gone.

When Robin had walked past him, Nick had caught a whiff of a scent.

It was faint. Very, very faint.

But it was familiar.

Very, _very_ , familiar.

* * *

"Time travel." Finnick uttered dryly, eyes half-lidded. "Ha. Ha. Ha. Is that's the best you can do?"

"Okay, maybe that was a little too far-fetched, but it's true!" Judy said impatiently. "I saw it! He just got sucked into that machine! You've gotta believe me!"

"Get your eyes checked." Finnick replied dully.

"I'm not kidding!"

"I am."

"Sorry, what?" Judy asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"I am kidding. I believe you."

She paused, rubbed her eyes, and paused again.

"You're kidding."

"I'm not." Finnick growled, a tinge of annoyance in his voice.

"No, no, no. You've to be kidding that you are kidding!" Judy replied. "I don't believe it!"

"What the heck do you mean by that? Huh?"

"You never kid around, do you? Finnick, are you sure you are yourself today?" Judy said, looking incredibly amused, her purple eyes laughing.

"Oh, now you can't take a joke! What is wrong with everybody today?" Finnick grumbled, throwing his arms up into the air.

"Hahaha." Laughed Judy, "So, you believe me."

"What? Time travel? Yeah."

He then took out his PawPhone and started fiddling with the screen.

"Once you see this, you'll know why I believe you."

"This." Finnick said, as he turned his phone over, showing Judy the screen. The bunny looked at it, her smiling face disappearing, and slowly it was replaced with a frown; a look of worry and confusion.

She hurriedly took Finnick's PawPhone, her eyes widening the moment she saw the silhouette, standing there, smugly, coolly.

"Nick…" She breathed. "This… the game. It can't be..."

She looked to her right, meeting Finnick's serious look. With all due seriousness, he nodded his head firmly.

"Game Over." She murmured. "He's in danger."

"That's why you need to get out of here and save him."

Judy nodded. "Right."

"And this is also why I believed something so crazy like time travel, since it is very likely he had gone back to the time when Robin Hood lived." Finnick pointed out. "The Medieval times."

"Medieval times… Wait a minute... this game..." Judy slowed down, her eyes unblinking as thoughts ran through her mind. All of a sudden, she stood up onto her bed, jumping in glee as she squealed,

"Finnick! Thank you! We've got another lead!"

"Wha-What's going on?" Finnick asked in shock.

"This game! Nick! Inside it! It can't be a coincidence! Just finding the time machine isn't enough, we need answers! We need to find out who programmed and created it! What they know about time travel! Who knows, maybe they were the ones who made the time machine! Ooooh yes!"

The mattress propelled her upwards, and soon she hit her head onto the ceiling.

"Ow…" She moaned, curling up on her bed in pain, while Finnick chortled in a corner. The same squirrel nurse came hurtling over, and after clearing up the misunderstanding that she got punched by a child (Finnick was not happy with that), she calmed down and sat on her bed.

"So, you're going to find the creators of this game." Finnick said, looking skeptical.

"Yep." Judy agreed.

"Oh, you think that no one tried to find out who made this stupid game?" Finnick snorted. "Even the internet has no idea who they are!"

"Then what do you suggest?" Judy answered, smirking. "Surely a hustler like you has plenty of ideas?"

"Only… one…" Finnick trailed off, before he angrily cried out, "But a cop like you won't use it!"

Judy blinked her eyes in surprise before she said, "It's illegal."

Finnick hesitated, before he answered a yes.

"What is it?"

"Hacking."

Judy eyes narrowed, and she drummed her fingers on her chin. Her ears went straighter than even before, a huge grin across her face.

"Thank you Finnick."

"Yeah, whateve- Huh!? Are you-!?"

Judy quickly placed a finger to her lips, and Finnick immediately held his breath. His shouting was loud, loud enough to wake the whole hospital up.

"-Really going to hack into the… game?" He said it a lot softer this time.

"I won't be doing the job." Judy said with a confident smile. "Do I look like I have computer hacking skills?"

"Of course not!" He chuckled. "A cop like you won't know where to find hackers anyway."

"I don't. But Finnick, you do."

"Me?"

"You've got your network. You definitely know someone in that shady business."

"Fine. But don't you dare regret it."

"I won't."

The Fennec fox sighed, and placing his paws on his lap, he took in a deep breath.

"They call him Killer. He's the best, and the most dangerous, hacker in all of Zootopia."

* * *

 **Thank you all so much for the follows and reviews. *takes a deep bow* I am also very sorry for the super late update, due to my horribly busy schedule and I hope that you have enjoyed this chapter! And what do you think of the introduction of Guy (the gray fox)?**

 **If there are any irregularities, or errors, etc, please notify me :)**

 **Night Fury Yes, Will Scarlet is a great fake identity that Nick can take up. Thank you for the interesting suggestion, I will think about it :D**

 **I am also needing a few archery tips, because I have never tried the sport, nor even touch a bow in my whole life. If you happened to be knowledgeable in the area, it will do me a great help if you can contact me through PM/review!**

 **Oh, and Moana (Meowana, whichever you prefer) is so good. The first ever Disney movie to make me cry like three times in a row oh god.**


	6. Chapter 6

*Two months ago

In the dim, cramped little apartment hidden away and humbly spared from the noisiness of the nightlife of the city, Judy curled up on her bed, her face red from drinking over her tolerance level, as she tried to bury herself into the corner of her bed, all the while fighting hard to not show any sign of fear or cowardice. She hugged a few of her bunny dolls close to her chest, while her purple eyes, wide and glistening, were fixated on the screen. Meanwhile, Nick sat a respectable distance away from her, cross-legged, his eyes half-lidded as he took a side glance towards his partner, observing how she would twitch her nose nonstop. Her fur was standing up, cheeks still red and he stared at her with a bemused expression, clearly more engaged in watching her than the horror movie.

The portable television was set before them, on the table, the screen's light illuminating the duo. Nick suppressed a yawn, blinking tears of sleep out of his eyes as he watched the horrific scene where the ghost of the beaver murderer was gnawing on the wood of the house as he spewed out curses. The protagonist was now fleeing for her life, screaming, while the beaver ghost chased after her, cackling evilly like any malevolent ghost should. He wondered what had happened before this scene, but then waved off his thoughts, since he was not in the least interested in the plot; Judy was way more amusing to look at.

"Gotcha." The scratchy, high-pitched voice of the ghost rang from the television. Nick half-expected a scream from the protagonist, but instead a very loud, squeaky yelp hit him like a drum from his left. Followed by the expectant scream that resounded for a long while, before the screen faded to black, and seconds later, the credits started rolling.

He turned to look at Judy, who stoned at her spot, as if not aware that the movie had ended. With a grin, Nick brushed a finger at the tip of her ears.

Another sharp, squeaky yelp, and by now, Judy was hugging her thighs, hiding her face as she murmured repeatedly, "I am not scared, I am not scared, I am not scared..."

He shortened the distance between them and swiftly poked at her side. She froze up, and Nick thought for sure she will yelp once again. Except that she didn't and instead she shot him an angry look, peeved and somehow looking defeated

"Nick, stop it! I-I am not scared... " She moaned, her voice getting smaller, sounding very reluctant to say the last bit. "... You win."

"Oh, you bunnies, so emotional." Nick said teasingly, his lopsided smile emerging as naturally as ever.

"I thought... I could handle it!" Judy cried, her paws still shaking as she extended her arm out to add more emphasis to her words. "That's why..."

"But you couldn't." Nick said cheekily. "And you lost the bet- Carrots, remind me, what was it again?"

Judy took a deep breath, face red with embarrassment, and with a defeated tone, she muttered, "The bet that whoever screamef the most... while watching a horror movie will be the loser and have to treat a week of Snarlbucks to the winner."

"And you screamed..." Nick counted his fingers with a few nods of the head. "15 times! Is that a record, Fluff?"

Judy ignored him, feeling rather angry and disappointed in herself. She is a cop, and now look at her, all shaken up by ghosts, curses, and haunted houses.

"Sly fox." Judy breathed as she tried to cease the shaking. Nick wasn't at all afraid throughout the whole movie. He never shouted or screamed, and had just sat there good-naturedly, unperturbed by whatever was going on in the screen. He knew he would win. Who knows how many horror movies he had watched to train himself to be immune to its terror. On the other hand, this was the bunny's first time to come into direct contact with one. Her whole life in Bunnyburrow had lacked the word "horror" and now in the face of it, she had lost the battle, and the bet.

"Dumb bunny." Nick quipped, before he opened his arms. "If you need a hug right now, I'm available." He winked playfully.

Judy glared at him, annoyed, but she accepted his invitation, throwing herself into Nick's arms, and squeezing him so tight that he gasped for air. She really did need a hug to comfort those nerves.

"I need air, Carrots, air." Nick wheezed. "I'm... not going to go anywhere, so please, let... me breathe!"

The grip was finally loosened, and slowly the bunny pulled away from him, keeping the respectable distance away from him yet again, sitting cross-leggedly, leaning against the wall as her bright purple eyes shifted to her right and stared at Nick like he was a cuddly teddy and she was trying to not throw herself atop of him.

"The beaver... killed the entire family... he was so..." She blinked back her tears. "I shouldn't have drank so much alcohol... now I can't think... and I screamed so many times... that girl..."

"Okay Carrots, you need to take a deep breath." Nick said slowly, feeling just a tiny pang of guilt for making fun of her just now. Now look at her, all drunk and speaking gibberish. No, maybe he should have tried to stop her from drinking too much at the ZPD Annual March party, then he need not send her home out of worry, or get dragged into her apartment due to her drunken tendencies. But he had won a week of free Snarlbucks, and her nosy neighbors were out of town so thank god they did not hear any of her screaming or else she would have been so darn embarrassed by her silliness, so maybe it was all good.

"Nick..." Judy slurred, while hiccuping a few times. "I know this story... from a long time ago..." She paused for quite a bit, her nose twitching as she stared at Nick, her cheeks getting redder and redder, proving that the alcohol was indeed doing its work.

"Continue, continue." Nick coaxed, thinking that he should be a bit more delicate with a drunk Judy.

"They... got lost from each other and... they tried to find... each other and it was such a sad story... because they failed to do so... and I cried for days after the whole thing..." She hiccuped repeatedly, and her tiny tongue licked her dry, chapped lips before she continued, "But I love the story... so much... even though it was just a kid story my mum... told to me... and my siblings."

"Is that so, Carrots?" Nick commented lightly, his eyes musing at Judy.

"What if we get lost..." She murmured. Nick rubbed her ears, in which she smartly pushed his hands away, out of habit, and continued to murmur, "We, as in..."

"You and I?" Nick replied softly.

"Mmmhmm..." She closed her eyes. "What if I... got lost?"

"Is that supposed to be a question, Carrots?" Nick chuckled. "Of course I'll find you and get you back from whatever lonely little street corner you end up in."

"Lonely little street corner?" Judy giggled as she thought of the idea. "It's not that kind of lost. It's more of a separation kind of lost... being apart... and all. We are friends, right? What if we get separated one day? What if you got lost?"

"Geez, Carrots, I don't get separated from you. I don't get lost. Never." Nick said as he gently patted Judy's head, the bunny looking as if she was going to pass out any second. "You're drunk. Just hurry up and sleep. We have work tomorrow."

He got off of her bed, and after taking the remote, he switched off the television. Nick then turned around, finding Judy still in a drunken stupor, sitting there dazedly. He sighed, and gently shifted her and made her lie down. She did it all obediently, her eyelids on the verge of closing.

"Don't... get lost, Nick." She muttered as Nick pulled the blanket over her.

"I won't, Carrots." He said as reassuringly as he could. He could not understand what could have struck Judy to speak of such strange words. Perhaps alcohol can do weird things to a bunny's head. "I'll see you tomorrow."

With that, he turned around and walked to the door. He took one more glance, and then reached out for the door.

"I'll find you... if you ever get lost..." the faint voice of Judy came and Nick simply chuckled.

"You dumb bunny," He laughed breezily, as he twisted the doorknob and swung the door open. "I can never be separated from you."

* * *

If there was one thing Nick wanted to hate right now, after all that whimsical time travel doppelganger nonsense that had all happened in less than a day, mind you, his head is quite muddled, it would be a dream about the past. By all honesty, the truth has not sunk in, yet. It was around the middle of it all, and at that halfway point, the good fox was still trying to navigate what seemed to be reality and what seemed to be his own wishful thinking. He felt stupid, dumb, idiotic even, because right now he was just desperately fighting to accept the cold, miserable truth, plus probably trying to come to terms with this disgusting, horrible, exasperated, lonely feeling that he had never expected that he would experience in his lifetime. Just barely a day, he learnt so many things. Time travel was possible, and by the sweet love of Fate he looks like Robin Hood, and now he's going to take archery lessons (which are free of charge, in a sense, so he ain't complaining much), plus the fact that he will probably never be able to copy Robin's accent even though he was a fox, an animal species famous for their ability to adapt to whatever environment they get thrown into, and in his case, it's Medieval England.

He can smell the stench of a conspiracy behind the time travel machine, the goat and everything absurd that has happened up till now. Everything by far was merely the tip of the iceberg and nope, Nick was not happy with it. He had been worrying an awful lot for the whole day, and had acted quite out of character a couple of times in less than 24 hours. Worrying does not translate to being happy. He was unhappy. And if you add other unwanted emotions that were bad enough to make the fox feel despaired, painfully missing a half of his original self, it is a direct conclusion that this fox's mind and soul weren't in a pretty state. And if you asked who is the main reason behind it, one name is perfect to answer this question.

Judy Hopps.

Here in Sherwood Forest, if you walked far enough, you may wind up standing before the Major Oak, the tree looking like any other tree surrounding it, but if you prod any further, you might find Nick Wilde lying up high on one of the branches, legs dangling, tail swishing, head resting on his arms, as he stared at the night sky of Medieval England, wide awake after being rudely interrupted by a dream of the past, the sparkling stars reflected in them.

His head was oddly empty, but his heart isn't. Somewhere inside, he was still fighting, to deny the truth. That fleeting dream that ended the moment he blinked his eyes open was making it way harder than it was supposed to be for Nick Wilde to seriously tell himself one fact and to believe it.

 _Geez, Carrots, I don't get separated from you. I don't get lost. Never._

"Pfft." He uttered to himself, in an effort to chide, and make fun of his past self for saying those words. Well, look at him now, separated from his best friend, and the wall between them may be one wall, but its sheer monstrosity proved to be daunting.

Time was the wall.

It was bloody freaking Time.

Not only that, he was literally worried sick about her. Last he saw Judy, it was her limp body helplessly sprawled on the ground, and now the only piece of news he needed to give him a chill pill was whether Judy was safe.

Nick's arms extended upwards, the backdrop speckled with stars, those celestial bodies thousands of light years away and at the thought of it, he cringed, as the lonely feeling in his chest started ripping more things apart inside of him. It had only grown bigger and more hideous as compared to the afternoon when he had likened it to a feeling of missing his friends back in the force and being heartbroken. It was much more than that. Much, much more.

It was solitude. Utter solitude like he was going to get sucked into a black hole. No, he was already in it. Like a big, ugly vortex where he probably had no way of getting out.

Everything felt so... far away. Unreachable. So what if he managed to adapt to Medieval England? So what if he learnt archery and whatever useless skills outlaws may learn? They amounted to nothing if he can never return home.

Robin Hood said to him that he could return home. But no, things weren't so simple that having faith could make things happen. Robin Hood knew nothing. No one knew anything, except for Nick Wilde.

Nick was starting to take it in, as he stared at the crazily vast night sky. He was taking it in, how everything could amount to nothing, how he was alone, how unpredictable the situation was.

And how he may never get to see Judy again.

 _I'll find you if you ever get lost._

Nick retracted his arm, closing his verdant eyes, breathing slowly as he absorbed those words like a sponge.

This was what Judy meant by "lost".

 _We are lost._

 _As in, you and I._

 _Nick and Judy._

The fox let out a long, long sigh, as he placed his arm onto his chest. His heart ached. It was still beating, but the rhythm was stagnating, suffocating him.

Dreaming of her never hurt so much before.

A soft sniffle, just barely audible, ruffled through the leaves of the Major Oak, and if you looked really, really hard enough, you can see small glistening tears rolling off Nick Wilde's cheeks.

* * *

Judy Hopps wanted to turn back time.

She wanted to push the hour hand and minute hand back, make them reverse, make them retrace their steps, their hours, their minutes, their seconds. Maybe just like Rapunzel in Wrangled. Her long golden blonde hair, glowing, as she sang that song.

"Flower gleam and glow,

Let your power shine,

Make the clock reverse,"

Judy took a deep breath, feeling strangely tired just after softly singing three lines. Probably caused by the effects of the paralysis that were lingering in her. It stung, a little. Just a rippling sting that pinches her lightly if she moved.

She remembered the movie quite well. About the long lost princess with golden hair that has healing powers. And with all the frying pans. She remembered she had watched it in her apartment, on the old portable television she borrowed from her landlady, and had gotten the Blu-ray disc from Duke Weselton or Weaselton or whatever-ton he had for a last name after she had confiscated his illegal goods. Well, the bunny was using them for her own personal entertainment and pleasure, but she supposed there was no harm if she watched a few, or perhaps all of them, before handing them over to Chief Bogo.

She remembered the partner who had watched the movie with her. The one who had first suggested that they could keep the whole stash in her apartment, and meet up every Monday and Friday to marathon through a few of those movies until they were satisfied and could peacefully part with them. The one who had been staying beside her ever since they teamed up during Otterton's case.

The truth seemed to hit her harder and harder as it sank in deeper and deeper, as she thought more and more about him.

 _Nick._

Suddenly, the bright ringtone of her phone jolted her away from her thoughts, and she slowly turned her head towards the bedside table, noticing the device vibrating vehemently. Judy then reached out for it, the same tingling sting pinching her muscles.

After she saw the number, Judy hurriedly removed the pillows, and adjusted herself to provide a plain background behind her that would not give herself away from being in the hospital. After easing herself, she tentatively slid a finger across the screen, taking the call.

"Hey, Mum!" She said as perkily, as cheerfully as possible.

"Oh hey Honey! It's been days since we've talked!" Bonnie Hopps replied enthusiastically, her face fairly close to the camera. "How's things back in the force?"

Judy forced a great big grin that really tugged at her cheek muscles and for once she was aware how tiring it felt like to genuinely not feel like smiling, or talking, even. "Everything's great! I do real police work which is all really interesting, especially since Nick..." Her voice trailed off, her grin stuck on her face as her thoughts seemed to sink deeper into whatever abyss they ended up in.

"Judy?" Her mother asked, a hint of worry manifesting when she called her name.

"So yeah! Work is smooth-sailing!" Judy nodded her head, trying hard to convince her mother that she was totally...

"Is everything okay, Honey?"

"Fine!" She immediately replied. "I'm totally fine!" She stared at her mother in the phone and Judy could already expect what she will say next.

"No, you're not. Your ears are droopy." Her mother pointed out. Judy pursed her lips, and in her mind, she was reprimanding her ears for being so infuriating.

"I'm..." She began, before her shoulders dropped. "... Not fine."

"Oh, Honey, what happened?" Bonnie asked gently, her kind eyes focused entirely on her daughter.

"I..." Judy let out a sigh, and finally decided to let the cat out of the bag. "Am in the hospital."

Judy knew her mother was going to start making a fuss, and true enough, Bonnie was starting to shout.

"Hospital!? Oh my goodness, Honey, are you alright? You didn't get shot or kicked or stabbed or-"

"Mum. It was just paralysis, I'm not hurt. I'll be discharged tomorrow. Don't call Dad over, please, no, Mum." She really did not want both of her parents to fuss over her.

"Oh, oh, alright. Your father's sleeping deep, so I can't wake him up anytime soon." Bonnie chuckled, before her countenance turned serious. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"Sorry." Judy murmured, as she looked down out of guilt.

Her mother gave a small smile, before she uttered, "Well, actually, I called because I thought something was wrong after I watched the news."

"News?" Judy said slowly, suddenly realizing where the conversation was going.

"A missing fox. ZPD cop." Bonnie answered, her brows knitting down anxiously. "Is it Nick?"

Judy felt her breath suddenly trapped in her windpipe the moment her mother spoke his name.

"Honey? Say something." Bonnie urged. "He is missing, isn't he?"

Her purple eyes got progressively wetter by the second, paws trembling more and more.

"Mum..." Judy croaked. "I... I... Nick's... Mum, I really don't know how to... say this... but..." She choked on her words, her nose twitching a lot and tears involuntarily flowed out as she grappled to keep her emotions stable.

"... I'm scared, Mum. Everything doesn't feel like reality right now, Mum. He... still haven't watched all those pirated movies with me... ten more of them left in the bag... and... and he said he wanted to eat my blueberry pies. What about our daily meetups before we go to work?" She let out a wounded sound, like a nightmare had bowled her over and was strangling whatever that was left in her throat.

Bonnie Hopps took it upon herself to remain silent, as she patiently listened to her daughter. She was admittedly surprised how her usually fiercely optimistic daughter could suddenly look so afraid, so despondent, so small, as if she was trampled all over by some unseen, psychological force.

"What if he is gone. Forever?" Judy finally uttered.

"Have a little faith, Honey." Bonnie replied gently. "Do you remember that story I told you back when you were seven? About the two little bunnies that got lost from each other and went through all those adventures to get back to each other?"

Judy's tears did not have any sign of stopping, nevertheless, she nodded her head in agreement.

"You have to be like them, Judy. You are a trier!' Bonnie emphasized. "No matter whether it is a happy ending, or a sad ending, you have to do everything you've got to find him back. He is lost, you find him. And if you are lost, you need to trust him that he will find you too."

"Mum..." Judy said, her tears slowing down on the output, and the bunny started wiping the liquid away. Then, with a genuine grin, she continued, "Thanks."

"Now that's a smile." Bonnie remarked. "It's late, time to get some sleep, you tired bun bun."

"Good night, Mum."

"Good night, Judy. Remember to call me soon!"

"Mmm, mmm." Judy muttered, before she waved lightly towards the camera and pressed the end call button.

After setting her phone aside on the bedside table, Judy grabbed the pillows that were left by her foot, placing them behind her, propping them up nicely and then patting them hard in the center. She buried her head into the soft, fluffy heaven, before she remembered that she was singing something moments ago.

Tears dried, her mind and body exhausted, she closed her eyes, and before she fell asleep, she managed to whisper,

"Bring back what once was mine."

* * *

Robin of Locksley had a lot on his mind tonight. So much, that it felt rather surreal. Meanwhile, the fox meandered down the narrow, rocky path that led to Locksley, humming a small tune that echoed all around him. He could see the faint light of his land peeping out of the treetops, and he continued his little trip back home, and amidst of this, he still had a lot on his mind.

There was this foreboding feeling building up in his chest, and he couldn't quite get what it was that was irking him so much. He tugged at his tunic, finding himself quite underdressed, really, since he is a noble, a lord and master of the Locksley Manor, as well as the land surrounding it. He wasn't one to care much about status and power, but he supposed that he was guilty of not looking presentable enough before the King of England.

But this was not the reason why he was feeling this mysterious uneasiness. Robin knew that it was those foxes. The separate meetings had felt strange, for it has been years since he met one of his own kind, and two of them, for that matter. He was pretty sure that most foxes in Nottingham had been wiped out by the pestilence years ago, and he had been the only one to have survived.

Guy of Gisborne, the gray one, with remarkable swordsmanship.

Nick Wilde, the same type of fox as himself, and miraculously, his look-alike, yet he was surprisingly weak at wielding a sword.

He thought it sounded comical in his head, but as he thought about it longer, he remembered that Nick was competent in using that strange and quaint black beauty called "gun". Why, he chuckled to himself, who knows, maybe Nicky Nick has a talent in archery.

He could somehow guess that Guy of Gisborne came from somewhere else in England, but Nick was a complete mystery. An enigma, of a sort.

The fox noble was soon approaching his Manor, and most of the little huts and cottages in the village had their lights out, proving that many mammals have been already asleep, and Robin was finally aware of how late it was. Little John had left Nottingham Town without telling him, and honestly Robin was alright with that, since it was his fault for staying so long in the forest. But the fox was still hoping that the bear had at least popped by his household and informed the worrywarts Toby and Maisie, as well as old Alastair, that the Master of the Manor was going to be late.

Thinking twice, he supposed that Johnny wouldn't do that.

Swinging the door open, Robin was soon greeted by two hedgehogs that were storming towards him, both looking especially agitated.

"Master! Where have ye been?" Maisie cried out.

"You worried us ta death!" Toby shouted. "There could've been ghosts!"

"Bandits!" Maisie added with a shrilly voice.

"Demons!" Toby was now jumping up and down, looking utterly furious.

"Toby, calm down-" Robin sighed.

"No, no, no, I ain't done! Those evil little things that pop out in the night! Redcaps! Wights! Beasts! My Gran saw 'em! Really now, Master, ya need ta stop leavin' us hangin' here!" The hedgehog tensed up, his spikes looking extra dangerous.

"Alright, alright, Toby, if you can just calm-" Robin uttered as he took a few steps back, or else those needles could just come flying towards him.

"And you know those bandits lurkin' around the village at nigh'!" Maisie interrupted, her words all squeaky and fast. "Those murderous meerkats could kill you!"

"Maisie, not you too." Robin groaned. "I am fine!"

"The Master said that he's fine, and he looks fine, so please stop goin' all crazy, you two." An austere-looking armadillo trotted over, his arms holding onto a thick wool coat. "Master Robin, it's a cold night, do wear this on."

"Thank you, Alastair, thank you, but maybe not the wool coat? I'm feelin' rather warm, actually." Robin said gratefully, before he gave a sheepish look and a short bow towards the two hedgehogs. "I apologize for worrying all of you."

Maisie and Toby exchanged looks, before the two collectively sighed.

"We've prepared the bath, Master." Maisie said. "But it has probably gone cold."

"Dinner too." Toby added. "But it has probably gone cold."

"Well." Robin shrugged his shoulders, before he took his cap off and placed it on a hook that was hammered into the wooden walls. "I can take the cold."

"Master Robin, I have-"

"Alastair, thank you, but not the wool coat." Robin repeated once again, the fox familiar with the armadillo's habit.

"But Master, it's a letter from the royal messenger." Alastair muttered. "Unless you don't need it, I can throw it into the fireplace-"

Robin froze, his black eyes going wider by the second. He felt as if ice cold water was poured over him, and the foreboding feeling in his chest seemed to let out all of a sudden, as reality hit him hard in the face.

"Master?" The armadillo quirked an eyebrow, while Toby tiptoed and waved his tiny paw before the fox's muzzle, trying to get the fox's attention.

"Sorry, I'm quite alright, Alastair." Robin hurriedly replied. "Could you pass me the letter?"

Alastair dutifully placed a scroll into the paws of the Locksley Lord, and without further ado, Robin unrolled it. At the bottom of the parchment, the royal seal was indeed placed, with red wax and all. He carefully read each word, and with each sentence, the frown on his face seemed to crease more and more.

"Master, what does it say?"

He paused for a bit, feeling the eyes of the trio on him, and after he neatly rolled the parchment back, he handed it over to Alastair.

"I need all of you to help me pack for a little trip. I will leave at dawn tomorrow." He said, before he swiftly moved passed the three animals, the fox urgently heading towards the stairs, the same anxious frown sitting on his brow.

"Where are you bound to, Master?" Toby called out, looking rather confused.

One foot on the first step of the staircase, Robin took in a deep breath, and turning around, he answered, his voice strangely tense and unsettled.

"The Royal Castle."

* * *

 **I'm not quite satisfied with this chapter, but I thought I should at least touch on the relationship between Nick and Judy. And you've seen that I've been trying to pull in references here and there (like Tangled for example) but aye, I hope you guys have enjoyed this chapter! Do give some feedback so that I can try to work things out :D**

 **The next chapter's probably gonna be focusing about the medieval stuff (the castles and nobles and whatnot). It's gonna be a hell of a ride for both you and I, I guess?**

 **And as always, the next chapter will take a long while to write, so please be patient with me. Junior College isn't fun, just sayin'.**


	7. Chapter 7

**It has been way too long since I've written another chapter for this story (more than a year oh my) and I'm sorry for keeping you waiting!**

 **Before we start with this chapter, allow me to introduce a story, more specifically, a manga (aka a Japanese comic for those who don't know) that has similar premises and ideas like Zootopia. Yes, if you need more stories with interesting settings and themes, this story will satisfy every bit of your desire. In fact, in my opinion, this manga is far more superior than Zootopia. Simply because it deals with much more mature themes, and introduces a very psychological side of the herbivore-carnivore dichotomy. If you wanted to see a darker side of Zootoopia, this is probably it. It goes so in-depth into the world of animals that it's mindblowing. The name of the manga is " Beastar".**

 **Here is a sypnosis of it:**

 _ **In a world populated by anthropomorphic animals, herbivores and carnivores coexist with each other. For the adolescences of the Cherryton School, school life is filled with hope, romance, distrust, and uneasiness.**_  
 _ **The main character is Legosi the wolf, a member of the drama club. Despite his menacing appearance, he has a very gentle heart. Throughout most of his life, he has always been an object of fear and hatred by other animals, and he's been quite accustomed to that lifestyle. But soon, he finds himself becoming more involved with his fellow classmates who have their own share of insecurities and finds his life in school changing slowly.**_

 **Still not convinced? Hey, this manga won an award that is quite a big deal in Japan, alright? But here are some mini spoilers that can perhaps make you more interested in this series: there is a badass panda psychiatrist who treats carnivores who gave in to their feral instincts, there is a mafia composed of 33 (or was it 35?) lions, and the panda psychiatrist and Legosi (the main character, who also has a really cool name) fought against said mafia. And yup, there is a school of animals. I repeat, a SCHOOL OF ANIMALS. I love the way the manga builds up, and even though you may feel that the plot seems slow at first, I beg you to persevere and read on, because it is an amazing story that surpasses the family friendly Zootopia. Oh, right, if you are 16 and below, ignore whatever I just said.**

 **Rambling over! On to the story!**

* * *

In the wee hours of the morning, the sound of bounding, blundering footsteps that created mini-earthquakes woke Nick from his slumber. The dense curtain of plant growth that covered the entrance to the treehole was parted in half, the morning daylight flooding the small space instantly. Nick groaned and turned over, his bushy tail lightly swishing over and covered his head to shield himself from the bright morning glare.

"Rise and shine, Nicky Nick!" The bumbling voice of Little John yelled, the small space echoing his words, amplifying it a hundred times. Nick's ears pressed themselves harder against his head and he started making a series of noise that sounded close to muffled moans and inaudible complaints.

"Wakey wakey wakey!" Little John continued chanting as he clanked pots and pans together, the bear acting as a very effective alarm clock. Defeated, Nick reluctantly pulled himself up, his head lightly touching the roof of the hole, and rubbing his temples, he yawned, mouth wide open and canines all showing. He carefully got out of the treehole, and he squinted his eyes, not used to the brightness.

"Mornin', Nicky Nick." Little John chirped, before he continued to whistle away a fine little tune and set down a sizeable picnic mat. The bear cheerfully took out a few slices of bread, butter and jam out of a dainty basket he had brought along.

"Good morning, John." Nick lazily replied, as he tottered over, back slouching over from his horrible sleeping experience inside the cramped treehole.

"Little John." The bear emphasized. "Don't ya forget the 'Little', Nicky Nick. It's more pleasant to the ears."

"I hope you can forget 'Nicky'." The fox replied, looking vexed and frankly, very irritated.

"Oh, what words!" Little John exclaimed. "I could never forget such a darlin' nickname! Isn't that so, Nicky Nick?"

Giving up, Nick rolled his eyes, before he softly sat onto the mat. Little John whistled once more while he rubbed his belly wistfully, a hint of drool dripping down from his lips with his fervent desire for food.

Grabbing the jar of jam, Nick unscrewed the cap, and upon taking in the aroma, he let out a sigh, his face splitting into a satisfied grin.

"Blueberry." He purred with delight. Little John chuckled loudly, a silly smile on his face, his eyes twinkling as they gazed upon Nick.

"Why, blueberry's Rob's favourite too!" said the bear, a look of sheer amusement and surprise on his face. "I only like good ol' bread and butter."

"That's good to know." Nick replied offhandedly, as he started applying a thick glob of jam onto a slice of bread with the knife. Soon he was munching onto the fruity goodness, while Little John had already swallowed two whole slices.

"Oh right, where's Hood?" Nick asked, finally aware that the archer was not present.

"Ain't here, pal. Old Rob's should be on his way to the Royal Castle."

"Royal Castle?"

"Yeah, in Westminster. Never liked the place. Snobby nobles and royalty, the whole lot. Except for Rob and some others, o'course."

"Huh." Nick commented lightly, before he took his second slice. He wasn't that surprised at the news, and held little interest in it. Meanwhile, Little John reached into the basket, pulling out a wooden tankard that had a hinged lid over it. Flipping it open, a sweet, alcoholic smell leapt out of it, and Nick took a cautious glance at the bear that was chugging down the ale down his throat. Beer in the morning. Medieval mammals do have strange habits.

They ate in silence, until Little John started burping. His tankard was empty, ale down to the last drip, but his burping just continued on and on like a broken record. Nick cringed a little, not too obvious, before he acted oblivious to the constant burping. When Little John finally stopped, Nick was already done with his plate, not exactly full, but it was enough.

"Oh," It came off as a very unsuspecting, disembodied note, until Little John continued, "Rob's not here today."

"Yes, I know."

"So he can't teach ya archery today, can he?"

"Oh," This time, it was Nick who made the sound, the fox looking appropriately attentive when he realized that the whole archery business had slipped out of his mind. "Are you going to teach me?" He added. "You look like you do archery."

The bear shook his head, giving Nick a rather apologetic smile. "I've dabbled in it, but only the Lord knows who's the best archer in these parts, and tis the best if ya listen to Rob."

A bored look immediately befell onto Nick's face, his eyes half-lidded, lips folding into a disagreeable scowl.

"This is such a great morning." He deadpanned, as he gave bored glances towards the dime a dozen trees surrounding him.

"Ya could go down to the village and take a look around?" Little John suggested.

"While wearing that get-up like yesterday and look stupid? Nope, not gonna happen."

Little John started casting Nick knowing glances, and then was saying in a sing-song voice, "But Rob's out of town."

Nick's lop-sided grin emerged, and he relaxed considerably as he leaned slightly backwards, arms propping him up.

"Alright, I know what you're thinking, John,"

"Little John."

"Little John." Nick's grin disappeared immediately after, and with a disapproving look, he continued, "But no, I'm not going to do whatever you think I can or should do."

"Oh come on!" Little John shouted, throwing his arms out in disbelief. "It won't hurt ya tryin' ta pretend bein' Robin for the mornin'? No one'll notice!"

"People know that he is out of town." Nick reasoned, his fingers pointing as he talked. "And if I go into the village, there's bound to be someone who will notice the abnormality! I'm not going down there just to land myself in anymore trouble."

Little John opened his mouth, but left with no words, he shut it closed. He rubbed his chin, as he contemplated.

"Actually..." began the bear, as his eyes lit up. "No one knows that Rob's out of town!"

Nick gazed at the bear weirdly, looking confused. Little John excitedly continued, "No one, except the folks in Locksley Manor and I, knows that Rob left for the Royal Castle! Ya can still do it!"

"John, I am not-"

"Little John."

"Little John, I am not entertaining that option. Nuh-uh." Nick concluded, eyes close and he gave a serious shake of the head. "My decision is done, and set, and you can't make me." He smirked, confident that he had attained victory for himself. Meanwhile, Little John pulled a face, miffed at his apparent failure at gaining his source of entertainment for the day. But before long, a smile had found its way onto the bear's lips. Nick's smirk dropped, like an anchor into the ocean, his eyes widening to be as large as saucers when Little John stood up and loomed over him, his intimidating size making Nick feel dwarfed instantly. The fox yelped, and he thrashed about when he was suddenly lifted up by the brown bear with little effort. His body seemed miniscule in Little John's huge paws and for a moment there, the fox was instantly reminded that his opponent was a brown bear, a carnivore that has enough strength to crush trees.

"You're lighter than I thought you'll be!" Little John exclaimed. "Skinny, aren't ya?"

"What are you- oof!" Nick was suddenly placed onto the bear's shoulder with a loud thud, and Little John started bounding towards the forest path. The fox's face went paler and paler, finally realizing what was going on.

"You can't just forcefully bring me there! I never allowed this!" Nick yelled as he pounded his fists onto the bear's back.

"I can, and I am doing just that." Little John replied pleasantly, and shooting his free arm into the air, he said merrily, "Off we go to Nottin', Nicky Nick, and this'll be a great mornin'!"

* * *

England's forests were strange, fantastical, and to be frank, Robin fancied its odd atmosphere. The crinkly, bristly ground, the rustling foliage, even the drops of sunshine that peeked through the tree tops. There was nothing to dislike about it.

"Wyatt, do you need some rest?"

The horse shook his head, and quietly walked on. At his response, Robin let out a sigh. He shouldn't have asked.

Horses were usually a talkative bunch, and perhaps a tad bit prideful. They will never stay quiet if a smaller animal, such as a fox as himself, were to ride on their backs.

But not Wyatt. The mysterious animal never complains, and never talks. Yet he listens to no one else, but Robin. And the fox himself never truly understood why. Well, he did save his life in the past, and it was likely due to this, that the horse stubbornly stayed by his side.

The two had been riding towards Westminster since dawn, and Robin knew that Wyatt would be somewhat drained by all that walking. His breath was already starting to go off rhythm, and Robin was aware they need to have a water break soon.

"Wyatt, let's rest." Robin said. At the Locksley Lord's words, Wyatt finally stopped, his hooves crunching the dead, dried leaves beneath.

Wyatt never complains, but he listens.

The horse relaxed, and then stood up on his hind legs, stretching his tired muscles. He nodded towards Robin, and the fox immediately understood that Wyatt was going off to find a lake to freshen up. After sending Wyatt off, Robin then took out his own water bag and drank the liquid. He held it tightly, while looking around himself, at the multitudes of leaves and bark. At the rate at which they were travelling, it would not take long for them to reach Westminster.

The fox frowned at the thought of going to the Royal Castle.

Castle invitations were usually sent out for the nobles to gather, perhaps for a party or a meeting, and Robin would not make an appearance for any of them, unless necessary. He never liked to mingle too much with certain nobles, and he'd often took the liberty to miss such gatherings.

This time, Robin knew all too well that there was no party. England had nothing to celebrate. And even if it really was a meeting, it was strange to hold it when the Third Crusade was already underway. Without the king, no meeting could be held, and certainly not at such a dangerous period.

Yet...

Robin paused, his paw slowly closing his water bag. Wyatt had returned, and without further ado, the fox climbed up the horse's back, and they soon resumed their journey.

Before the sun was high, they reached the edge of the forest, and the moment they exited through the trunks, a castle was within sight.

Towering, huge and grey with blue turrets and flags waving in the breeze, the castle was truly a breathtaking sight, yet Robin could feel no sense of relaxation within himself, for the hunch inside him was digging deeper. He hated it. He hated his hunches. Because they were usually right.

Upon arriving near the gates, Wyatt slowed down, and ahead, Robin noticed the rhino pointing their spears towards them, the bodies in a fighting stance.

"Halt!" One bellowed. "Name yourself, fox!"

Robin felt his eye twitch, and he stared at the two guards. As usual, animals outside of Nottingham still had those eyes of contempt for the foxes. Even if he had wore his best clothes, they still did not look beyond his species.

"Robin Hood of Locksley Manor." He said while unrolling the scroll that had the Royal family's emblem stamped on red wax. The guards' eyes widened, and the two exchanged glances, before they turned back to look at Robin. The two then stood straight and bowed towards the noble, who patted Wyatt's neck, motioning him to enter the Royal Castle. Wyatt let out a grunt, and slowly trotted his way in.

The outer bailey was expansive, and Robin took a few glances at the walls, just realizing how tall it was. It has been quite some time since he was here after all.

"Sir," A guard stopped next to the two. "You're early."

"Yes, indeed." Robin chuckled. "Now, where should I head to?"

"The stables first, Sir." The guard bowed. "Then you are free to head to the main building, the maids will guide you to a waiting room."

Thanking the guard, Robin then told Wyatt to head towards the stables, and the horse took off towards the left. A few rhino guards passed by them, many of them surprised by the image of a fox riding atop of a horse. And Robin paid them no mind, as they continued heading towards the stables.

The large, wooden stables soon came into view. Robin climbed down Wyatt's back, while scanning around the stables. It was well-kept, clean, with abundant stacks of hay in a corner, yet it was rather odd to see it completely devoid of any horses. Then again, the Third Crusade has begun, and it became understandable that no horses were left behind in the comforts of the castle.

"Sir Robin!"

A wallaby skipped up to the fox, its eyes sparkling with joy.

"Ah, if it isn't Russell." said the fox.

"Many greetings, Sir. And Wyatt, it's been a long time!" The wallaby's scratchy voice said as it looked up at the tall horse. Wyatt nodded his head, before he stood up on his hind legs, making him appear taller and almost intimidating. He did not utter a single word, and merely went into one of the stables, and sat down, the horse tired from the trip.

"That fella's still not much of a talker, aye?" Russell chuckled, and he turned back to Robin. "Oh, Sir Robin! Ya have no idea how happy I am to see you!"

"I am too, Russell." Robin replied with a grin.

"Anyhow, Sir's very early today! It'll take some time for the nobles to gather, I s'pose." Russell chirped. "Sir might try walkin' around the castle for a little. No worries, I'll take good care of Wyatt."

"I shall," Robin said. "Thank you, Russell."

The fox then walked out of the stables, his hands tightening the string of his cloak.

"I'll see ya soon, Sir Robin!"

Robin, waving a hand towards the wallaby, then made his way across the outer bailey of the castle. The bailey was full of guards, servants running about, perhaps still in the midst of preparation for the gathering. Sighing, he turned a corner and headed towards the main building.

At the steps of the main building, a Sika deer wearing maid clothing greeted him, frantic and dizzy as she quickly led him to a room. After she left, Robin took off his cloak, threw it onto the simple, goodly-sized bed tucked in the corner of the room. Scanning the room, it was adequately furnished, but it lacked things he could use to pass the time.

He swung the door open, exiting his room, and in the middle of the corridor, he contemplated on where he should go. After a moment, he headed off to a familiar direction.

Past the stairs, the archway, he finally saw the tall, green hedges, spots of flowers peeking out from the tops. He sauntered in, instantly greeted by a gorgeous garden, the flowers iridescent with colors, a cool, fresh scent lingering around. His body relaxed, and he took in a deep breath, comforted by the serenity of the place. He expected nothing less of the Royal Garden.

He walked along the stone path, the slabs cool to his paws. He could spend hours in here admiring each and every flower. The garden always chased away his worries, his burdens.

After walking a distance in, he noticed the small wooden bench obscured by a well-trimmed rose bush, trails of vine running across it. He walked a little faster, thinking of spending his time resting at the bench, until he found his whole body freezing the moment he laid eyes upon the animal who was here before him.

The fox before him sat peacefully on the bench, a book in hand, the parchment inside of it yellowed and battered. She did not seem to mind the state of it, as her eyes read each word with care. Her paws gracefully turned the pages, and he stared from a distance, his approach not noticed by her.

She was truly a beauty, her every action speaking of grace and feminity, and he could not tear his eyes away from her. His heart was thumping, trying to reach out to her, and yet his tongue was tied. So, he merely gazed at her.

After a few seconds, her nose picked up the scent of an uninvited guest. She turned around, and her chestnut brown eyes went wide, her grip on the book loosened.

"Robin?" She said, her voice flustered.

"Marian." Robin answered, a smile emerging on his face. The female fox's face melted into a loving smile, and she rushed towards him, the book laid forgotten. Her arms wrapped around the male fox's neck, tightly.

"Robin," she gasped. "You have no idea how much I've missed you."

"I think I do." Robin answered, his paw softly holding her closer. "It's as much as I've missed you."

"Oh, Robin." She sighed. "You hardly come by the castle, I thought you've forgotten about me."

"I could never, my love." Robin immediately replied. "I would've come by your side, if I could."

If one were to ever know of Maid Marian's connection to Robin, the Locksley Lord was certain that it will spell danger for the lady. His enemies were cruel, and even if Maid Marian is the adopted niece of His Majesty himself, she will not be spared.

"What brings you here?" She asked, and suddenly her face fell. "Are you here for the meeting?"

"Yes." He replied, his face grim-looking. Maid Marian gasped, and she anxiously held his paw within her own.

"Don't go, Robin." She pleaded. "Without His Majesty's protection, they will start moving and you'll..."

"Marian, my love, it's I who has to protect His Majesty, not the other way round." Robin said firmly. Marian fell silent, while a conflicted expression appeared on her countenance.

"I... understand," She finally uttered, her voice strained. She flashed a bittersweet smile towards Robin. She could never waver her lover's loyalty for the king. And if it ever did, she would never have fallen so hard in love with him.

"I'm sorry." Robin breathed. "I..."

"I'll wait." Marian cut in as she squeezed Robin's paw tighter. "No matter how long it'll be, I'll wait."

"Marian..."

He held her paw dearly, and kissed it softly. If only he wasn't a knight with numerous enemies, if only she wasn't royalty of no royal blood.

In the back of Robin's mind, he knew he was left with that short amount of time to spend with her, in this garden, and deep inside his heart, he fervently hope that time could slow down, that it could stop for the both of them.

But it did not last, and soon, Robin could hear the sound of carriages arriving and horses neighing. He turned to Marian, who gently nodded.

"Be safe." She whispered as she lets go of his paw. He gave her a longing look, and after much hesitation, he finally took off.

And there her eyes followed after his back, until he disappeared behind the hedges. She bent her head down, paws clasped together tightly in a prayer.

* * *

"Well, who do we have here?" A cynical voice called out. Robin paid no heed to the lords who started laughing in unison, and went to his seat.

"Sir Robin."

The fox turned to his right, just to see a moose politely greeting him with a nod of the head.

"Lord Morton." He answered in reply. A few snickers emerged from behind him, and the Baron before him glared at the nobles.

"What an unruly bunch." He said in a low whisper, looking quite offended. "If His Majesty was here-"

"Pay them no mind, my lord." Robin said softly, taking his seat. "Words spoken by fools should never be remembered."

"Yes, yes, of course." Lord Morton agreed while he straightened himself.

A loud bang against the wooden floor rang out, gaining the attention of everyone present. A snake, in which Robin recognized to be Sir Hiss, slid in.

"His Highnesssss, Prince John, arrivesss!" The snake enunciated, and the double doors swung open abruptly, sending the poor snake right smacked into the wall. A lion, with fur of a dull color, strode in with his head held unbearably high. He donned an oversized coat, multiple jewels adorning his paws, and as the nobels sent their greetings toward the prince, he sat down on his chair, slouching. Robin could only sigh in silence, at the conduct of the spoiled prince.

Sir Hiss then took over, the snake sliding up onto the table, setting himself right in the middle. A rhino guard came over and unrolled a scroll before the snake. The snake's beady eyes scanned across the room, and clearing his throat, he read out the Royal Decree.

"By the decree of His Royal Highnesssss, the benevolent Prince John, all the lands of England will be under his direct command, to assist King Richard the First in governing our empire. All subjects shall answer directly to His Highnessss, and have to obey each and every order under the name of His Highnessss. Every lord is to raise the taxes of their land by a third, and failure to do so will result in execution."

The room went deathly silent, and Robin's face was pale, unable to believe what he was hearing.

"Furthermore, citizens who are unable to pay their taxes on the day of collection will receive an increase in their tax payment for the following month. Citizens who fail to pay due taxes after three months will be executed. The Prince's tax collectors will be making their rounds to every fief henceforth, to ensure that the new rules are abided to."

The scroll was then rolled up, and the snake grabbed it by the tail and slowly slid down the table. It didn't take long for a flood of murmurs to fill the room, and suddenly, a deer with marvelous-looking antlers stood up.

"Your Highness, this is outrageous!" Duke Ainsworth voiced out, the deer looking agitated.

"Off with his head." The lion murmured. The deer's jaw dropped open, while a few guards came over, ready to approach the duke.

"While you're at it, remember to remove his antlers first," Prince John called out. "I'd like a nice throne made out of it."

The guards grabbed the deer roughly, and the desperate duke shouted, "Your Highness, please give me an explanation!"

"An explanation?" The lion looked at the deer, half-amused. "You disobeyed me, what other explanation do you need?"

The duke, in a state of shock, could no longer retort, and none of the other lords dared to stand up against the prince. For all of them were herbivores, and before a mighty lion with several rhino guards beside him, they did not have a chance.

"Your Highness," A voice spoke. Every single pair of eyes was soon directed towards the red fox, who nimbly jumped across, and headed right towards the prince. He made no sign of kneeling down, and stood there, his black eyes looking straight at the lion.

"How dare you stand before the king!" Prince John yelled.

"You are not the king, Prince John." Robin said. "King Richard is."

"How dare you!" The prince yelled in a fit of fury. "Off with his-"

"Only the king can execute a noble, Your Highness!" Robin raised his voice louder than ever, and everyone was frozen in their seats. "Will you risk gaining a bad reputation in your name, lose faith within the common people, and ignite the flames of rebellion?"

"You-!"

The fox then went down on one knee, his gaze not leaving the lion's.

"Please rethink your decision, Your Highness."

A tense silence followed, and Prince John, who was already red all the way down his neck, bared his fangs, mad and furious, yet unable to retort.

"Fine," He finally said, and he motioned the guards the let the deer go. Duke Ainsworth scrambled back to his seat, nearly collapsing into it.

"Aren't you afraid of me, Sir Robin?" The prince sneered. "Look at the others, shivering and wetting their pants, at the sight of a carnivore such as myself. You are brave, or perhaps, brazen."

The fox then chuckled, causing the prince to widen his eyes in surprise.

"Your Highness, you may have forgotten about this, but foxes are carnivores as well."

The lion gazed at Robin's eyes, and at that moment, an unnerving shiver ran down his spine. He nervously swallowed his saliva, before he stood up.

"I'm not feeling too well," the prince murmured, and he headed towards the door. Sir Hiss hurriedly announced the conclusion of the meeting, and quickly scuttled after his master.

Once the doors were closed, the lords avoided looking at the red fox, their paws shuffling against the wood as they quickly left the room. The fox then followed, choosing to go in the opposite direction, and he slowly descended down the staircase.

"Sir Robin, that was a spectacular performance." Lord Morton whispered softly, and the moose went past him hurriedly. The fox grinned, and continued to walk forward. He then picked up another scent, and he waited expectantly.

"Sir Robin,"

The fox turned around.

"Duke Ainsworth," Robin smiled.

"You're my benefactor, Sir Robin." The duke said as he bowed. "I cannot thank you enough."

"No, I thank you too," Robin replied. "It is assuring to know that there are nobility who still care about the people."

"No, it's what I should do as the duke of my fief. But a third of the current taxes... it is unheard of." The duke muttered. "The empire is already stretching our finances with the Third Crusade, just how much pressure must be placed onto the people?"

Robin merely shook his head.

"The least we could do is to hold up till His Majesty returns." Robin said.

"Yes," The duke sighed. "Until we meet again, Sir Robin."

The fox nodded his head, and after bidding the duke farewell, he then stood right there, not moving another step forward. After making sure that the deer had gone far away enough, he straightened his back, his paw resting on the hilt of his sword.

"So, Sir Guy of Gisborne," Robin called out. "Are you perhaps here to kill me again?"

It happened in a split second, two swords clashing with a loud clang, and Robin parried the gray fox's blows. The hooded animal jumped backwards, his eyes studying Robin meticulously.

"Maybe," the gray fox said as he stood a few steps above Robin. "Killing you is no easy task, after all. But we can make things easier."

"How so?" Robin breathed, his sword still pointing straight at the foe.

"As long as you don't get in His Highness' way."

Robin narrowed his eyes, his arms tense, while he gripped the hilt of his sword tighter.

"No promises, Guy." He said with smirk. "Foxes are sly, after all."

"Well, then keep up your guard, Sir Robin." The gray fox replied, before he leapt out of the tower. Robin swiftly ran up the steps, looking out of the window, but there was no sight of the assassin. He gritted his teeth, his head down and he balled his paws into fists.

He really hated his hunches.

* * *

 **Thank you for reading this chapter! I don't update often due to life stuff, so thank you for supporting this story for so long! I will probably take another 6 months hiatus, because this year is an A level year (aka a college exam? I'm not sure what is it considered to be in other countries) so please bear with me, and I will return soon with the 8th chapter.**

 **And I repeat: Go and read Beastars, it's an amazing story and I don't believe I had ever so strongly recommended anything in my whole life, so please, read it. If you have no idea what I'm talking about because you skipped the whole chunk of bolded words at the top, scroll up and read it again lol.**

 **See you guys again!**


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